PDP Primaries: Lagos, 11 other states get governorship candidates

Lead Visioner, Lagos4Lagos Movement, Dr Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor has clinched the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ticket for the 2023 governorship election in Lagos.

This is just as results of the exercise from 11 states of the federation emerged with expected winners announced, Wednesday.

Declaring the result in Ikeja, Lagos, Chairman of the Lagos PDP Electoral Committee/Returning Officer, Mr Emmanuel Ogidi, said that Adediran scored 679 votes to defeat his contender, Mr David Vaughan who polled 20 votes.

Ogidi, who noted that there were 775 ad hoc delegates for the primaries, said that 709 were accredited for the election.

According to him, 10 votes were voided in the election.

Ogidi said: “The total number of accredited voters is 709, and Olajide Adediran got 679 votes, DAKOVA (David Kolawole Vaughan had 20 and we had 10 voided votes.

“Having satisfied all the requirements in our guidelines, I want to announce Dr Olajide Adediran as our candidate after scoring the highest votes of 679. He is hereby declared the winner and returned elected.”

Otunba Olanrewaju Jim-Kamal, Mr Adedeji Doherty, Mr Ade Dosunmu and Mr Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour stepped down from the race.

Meanwhile, Delta, Gombe, Jigawa, Benue, Abia, Bauchi, Enugu, Oyo and Adamawa primary poll for the governorship have already been announced.

In Gombe, Alhaji Jibrin Barde emerged governorship candidate of the PDP for the 2023 general election.

Barde polled 160 votes to defeat five other aspirants in the primary election held on Wednesday in Gombe.

Announcing the results, Mike Oghiadomhe, the PDP Returning Officer for the PDP governorship primaries in the state, declared Jamil Gwamna scored 119 votes, Dr Ali Gombe got 17 votes, Adamu Suleiman 18 votes, Gimba Ya’u 1 vote and Babayo Ardo scored 13 votes.

He said that the total vote cast in the election was 328.

In Jigawa, Alhaji Mustafa Lamido, son of former state Governor Sule Lamido, emerged as the governorship candidate for the 2023 poll.

The returning officer for the primaries, Mr Isah Ahmed, said this when he announced the results on Wednesday in Dutse.

Ahmed said that Mustafa scored 829 out of the 832 votes cast to win the primaries, adding that Alhaji Saleh Shehu, placed second with zero votes.

One of the aspirants, Alhaji Adamu Bashir, announced his withdrawal a few hours before the commencement of the primary election.

In Benue, the speaker of State House of Assembly, Mr Titus Uba, ticket for the governorship election in 2023.

Returning Officer for the primaries, Mr Bode Ojomu said this when he announced the result of the election on Wednesday in Makurdi.

Ojomu said that Uba scored 731 out of the 851 votes at the event, adding that the deputy governor, Benson Abounu placed second with 81 votes, while Prof. Dennis Ityavyar got two votes to take the third position.

In Abia, former Vice Chancellor of the Abia State University, Uturu, Prof. Uche Ikonne, expectedly emerged the governorship candidate.

Ikonne was elected at the party’s primary election held at the Umuahia Township Stadium on Wednesday.

He polled 468 votes to defeat five other contestants in the exercise that took place under heavy presence of security personnel.

Mr Lucky Igbokwe came a distant second with 45 votes, while the only female contestant, Mrs Ngozi Merenge, scored five votes.

The Chairman of the Primary Election Committee and former Gov. Ayo Fayose thanked the delegates for their peaceful conduct during the exercise.

In Bauchi, Mr Ibrahim Kashim, emerged as the party’s governorship flag bearer for the 2023 general election, as state governor, Bala Mohammed had opted not to seek re-election in preference for a Presidential ticket.

Kashim, the immediate past Secretary to the State Government was the only governorship aspirant in the party’s primary election.

Mr Hassan Grema, Chairman, PDP Governorship Primary Election Committee, announced this at the end of the exercise on Wednesday in Bauchi.

He said that 656 delegates participated in the exercise, adding that only one vote was declared invalid.

“Ibrahim Kashim was the only aspirant of the party in the state and the delegates had to vote to complete due process in line with the electoral law,” he said.

In Enugu, Mr Peter Mba, a former Chief of Staff to ex-Gov Chimaroke Nnamani, emerged winner of the gubernatorial primaries in the state.

Mba, who was also Commissioner for Finance under the Nnamani administration, polled 790 votes in the primaries contested by nine aspirants.

His closest rival, Mr Chijioke Edeoga polled nine votes, followed by Mr Chinyeaka Ohaa with three votes while Sen. Ike Ekweremadu and Mr Chukwunta Gilbert with one vote respectively.

The other five contestants which included Prof. Hillary Edeoga, Mr Ken Onoh, Prof. Barth Nnaji, Sen. Gilbert Nnaji and scored nil votes.

Only three void votes were recorded in the primary election.

The Chairman of the PDP Gubernatorial Primaries Electoral Committee in Enugu State, Sen. Zik Sunday, who declared the result, described the process as “transparent, credible and peaceful”.

Sunday said that 812 delegates were accredited for the exercise with 807 votes cast.

He said that at the close of accreditation, two delegates from Oji River Local Government Area were absent.

The electoral committee chairman said that independent observers, including officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission, were on the ground to monitor the exercise.

19 aspirants purchased the gubernatorial nomination form of the party.

However, prior to voting during the primaries, eight of the aspirants stepped down for Mba.

The aspirants who announced their withdrawals are Messrs Chukwudi Nneji, Kingsley Udeh, Erasmus Anike and Nwabueze Ugwu, as well as, Messrs Ifeanyichukwu Nwoye, Onyekwere Nnaji, Beloved-Dan Anike and Gabriel Ajah.

In Oyo, incumbent State Governor, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State emerged as the candidate of the party for the 2023 governorship election.

Makinde defeated Hazeem Gbolarumi, who was his only opponent in the primaries held at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba, Ibadan, on Wednesday.

Announcing the results of the election, the secretary of the PDP Electoral Committee, Alhaji Abdullahi Mai Basira, said that 1,048 delegates were accredited to vote out of 1,086 delegates.

Mai Basira said Makinde scored 1,040 votes to defeat Gbolarumi, who scored only two votes; adding that six votes were voided.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Oyo State, Dr Mutiu Agboke, and the INEC Administrative Secretary, Alhaji Abiodun Onigate-Amosun, witnessed the primaries.

Representatives of security agencies at the election were the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Department of Security Service (DSS).

Delegates from across the 33 Local Government Areas of the state were at the stadium for the primaries.

In Adamawa, incumbent State Governor, Ahmadu Fintiri scored 633 out of 638 votes, to emerge as PDP’s governorship candidate.

Dr Gibon Katabs, Chairman of the electoral committee of the primary election made the announcement in Yola after the exercise.

Fintiri was the only contestant following the disqualification of Mr Jamil Waziri by the screening committee.

Katabs said that 668 delegates were accredited, but there were five invalid votes.

“Gov. Ahmadu Fintiri scored 663 valid votes and is hereby returned as the governorship candidate of PDP for Adamawa in 2023,’’ he said.

Katabs also commended the delegates for the successful primary election.

In Delta, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Chief Sheriff Oborevwori won the governorship ticket.

Oborevwori won the PDP governorship ticket to emerge as the gubernatorial candidate of the party in Delta to contest the 2023 General Election.

The primary election, which was held at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba, the State Capital, saw eight hundred and twenty-five (825) delegates accredited to vote.

Oborevwori polled 590 votes to emerge as the candidate of the PDP for Delta in the 2023 general election. While David Edevbie scored 113 votes to come second, Senator James Manager polled 83 votes from delegates.

TNG reports Olorogun Fred Majemite polled 6 votes, Peter Mrakpor polled 9 votes, Kingsley Otuaro polled 9 votes, Omizu Odebala polled 4 votes and Kenneth Gbagi polled 1 vote.

A total of 14 aspirants were announced for the governorship primary election but only 13 were present at the venue, excluding Gbagi called in absent due to fatigue.

Other governorship aspirants that took part in the primary election are Abel Esievo, Chris Iyovwaye, Braduce Angozi, Lucky Oroye, Onajefe Gift and Ike Arariboro.

In Niger, the governorship primary election of the PDP was shifted from Wednesday to Thursday, May 26, following protests by four of the five aspirants contesting the election.

The protesting aspirants, Alhaji Sani Kutigi, Alhaji Sidi Abdul, Mr Abdulrahman Gimba and Alhaji Abubakar Jankara, insisted that delegates must identify themselves properly before they could be accredited.

A total of 800 delegates were expected to elect the party’s governorship candidate.

The four aspirants took the decision that all delegates must identify themselves properly after an emergency meeting they held in one of the offices at the PDP secretariat, venue of the election.

Jankara, who spoke on behalf of the aggrieved aspirants, conveyed their decision to the Chairman of the electoral panel and Deputy Governor of Bayelsa, Mr Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo.

The protesters insisted that delegates must present a means of identification, which should be a national drivers’ licence, a national identity card or international passport.

Also, in Rivers State, the exercise is expected to be held before the close of this week, following the refusal of the Federal High Court, Abuja, Wednesday, to grant an ex parte application filed by Mr Farah Dagogo asking the court to stop the gubernatorial primary election of the party.

Dagogo, a member of the House of Representatives from Rivers approached the court through an ex parte application filed and argued by his lawyer Mr Selekeowey Larry (SAN).

He asked the court to stop the primary pending the hearing and determination of his substantive suit in which he is challenging his exclusion from participating in the screening that would make him eligible to participate in the primaries.

The suit was instituted against the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC).

In his ruling on Wednesday, Justice Taiwo Taiwo held that after perusing the ex parte application, it was his view that the application had no merit.

“It is my well-considered view that this application ought to fail and same is dismissed,’’ Justice Taiwo said.

The judge said that the application failed owing to the fact that Dagogo delayed in filing it.

“I have looked at the ex parte application before me and I can see that the applicant filed his originating summons on May 12, and filed the ex parte application on May 18.

“Why did the applicant fail to file the ex parte application together with the originating summons?

“Why did the applicant wait for six days before filing the application as he is no doubt aware of the guidelines of the PDP for the conduct of primary election.

“I have to ask these questions to show that there has been a delay on the part of the applicant in timeously filing the application,’’ the judge said

Justice Taiwo also said that the balance of convenience was not in favour of the applicant as it would be an inconvenience to the respondents for the court to grant the application.

According to the judge, the applicant did not participate in the screening which is a condition precedent in taking part in the gubernatorial primary election of the PDP.

He dismissed the suit and fixed June 7, for hearing of the substantive matter.

Dagogo had prayed the court for an order of interim injunction restraining the PDP from conducting its governorship primaries in Rivers, and also to stop it from parading and or using any list of aspirants for the purpose of conducting the gubernatorial primary election for Rivers on May 26.

He further asked the court to restrain INEC from accepting any candidate which might emerge from the Rivers gubernatorial primary of the PDP pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

In an affidavit in support of the suit, Dagogo alleged that the PDP connived with the governor of Rivers and prevented him from participating in the screening.

He said that this was done by arresting and locking him up in the governor’s office.

In Zamafara, Alhaji Mahdi Aliyu-Gusau, the immediate past Deputy Governor of Zamfara and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant in the 2023 general elections has withdrawn from the race.

Aliyu-Gusau made the announcement on Wednesday in Gusau hours to the commencement of the party’s governorship primaries.

He urged his supporters, delegates and party leaders to vote for Dr Dauda Lawal-Dare to clinch the governorship ticket during the primaries.

Aliyu-Gusau thanked his supporters for the massive support he enjoyed during and after his days as deputy governor of the state.

Three aspirants, Lawal-Dare, Alhaji Abubakar Nakwada and Alhaji Wadatau Madawaki will slug it out for the governorship ticket of the PDP during the primary poll.