The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) stakeholders in Enugu State have made a passionate appeal to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to give certificates of returns to acclaimed winners of primaries for governorship, Udi/Ezeagu Federal Constituency and Awgu North Constituency in Enugu State, Mr Bede Chukwuekezie, Emmanuel Ozoene and Chijioke Udeani to get themselves ready for the 2019 general elections.

In a petition addressed to the national leadership of the APGA, signed by sixteen council chairmen of the party in Enugu State, Chukwuekezie was said to have had 45 votes out of 46 total votes cast, while his opponent got one vote only during the primary election. The signatories wondered why a certificate of return from the INEC should not be given to him “in an election he won as counted before the INEC officials, party delegates and journalists.”

The primary election was said to be witnessed by all the local government APGA chairmen in Enugu State with the exception of chairman of Enugu North and Igbo Etiti council areas who were said to be unavoidably absent during the primary election.

The protesting APGA stakeholders appealed to the party’s national leader, Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State, national chairman of the party, Chief Victor Oye and other APGA stakeholders to cause the INEC to issue the acclaimed winners with certificates of returns immediately for the interest of peace and the party progress in Enugu State. They said that denial of the certificates of returns to the aggrieved members would not be in the interest of the party even as the 2019 general elections are fast approaching.

“APGA Enugu is ready for the elections but we are distracted by the uncertainties surrounding our duly elected candidates. Rumors making rounds in Enugu State have it that the national leadership of our party is doing the bidding of the Enugu State PDP Governor but we do not want to believe this.

“We the under signed members are the authenticated party chairman of the seventeen local governments of APGA in the State and we demand the party leadership to give our candidates their certificates of return and summit their names to INEC so that we can begin preparations towards the forthcoming elections. If this is not done, we will be ready to support and stand with our candidates in the fight for justice in this matter, “the APGA stakeholders submitted.

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