The Kabiru Tanimu Turaki-led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said it supports the adoption of the Accord Party candidate, Senator Ademola Adeleke for the Saturday’s governorship election by its candidate, Olugbenga Adedamola.
Adedamola stepped down from the governorship race on Wednesday, and told his supporters to vote for Governor Adeleke in the election.
PDP which accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of denying Adedamola recognition and subsequently, the opportunity to campaign for the election, noted the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja upheld the candidate’s nomination as its governorship candidate for the Osun election.
The party in a statement by the National Publicity Secretary of the Interim National Working Committee (INWC) Ini Ememobong, said the Appeal Court panel held that having duly conducted primaries which were monitored by INEC, and the name of the winner forwarded to the commission, “there was no legal impediment to the (PDP) participation of the candidate in the elections.
“Specifically, it held that the access code for nomination on the portal was a mere administrative formality which cannot override the statutory provision of forwarding names to the commission, which PDP had done.”
It stated that the judgement confirmed IINEC’s bias against the Turaki leadership.
PDP said the primaries that produced its candidate was peaceful, transparent, and the result was not contested.
“It was duly monitored by INEC, but the commission blatantly refused to recognise our candidate thereafter and withheld the codes for the upload of candidates from us,” the party stated.
It disclosed that the Court of Appeal directed INEC to include the PDP logo on the ballot papers for the elections, but said though justice has finally been done, there was no opportunity for its candidate to undertake campaigns in preparation for the elections.
“This ugly situation would have been avoided had INEC chosen to act responsibly and not in the very partisan way that it did and continues to do,” the party regretted, and called on INEC to be a neutral umpire.
PDP stated that it is supporting the Accord Party candidate for the governorship election because, given “the unimaginable” position it found itself, the INWC “has chosen not to throw its hands up in defeat.”
According to the party, “As a true opposition party and in defence of multi-party democracy, and after exhaustive consultations with key stakeholders, the (INWC) has decided to support the candidature of Governor Ademola Adeleke of Accord Party for Saturday’s governorship elections.
“Governor Adeleke is a former member of our party who left because of the state-engineered and funded leadership conflict in our party.
“We therefore ask all our members to vote for Governor Adeleke. We encourage them to go out on Saturday to vote, defend their votes and ensure that their votes count in the election.
“Nigerians must resist the shameful do or die disposition of the APC to win elections in places where they are not popular, against the clear wishes of the people.
“Elections must be a true reflection of the peoples’ wish, freely expressed through the ballot.
“Anything short of that is robbery and must not be allowed to stand.”
