Gubernatorial aspirant for the 2024 election in Edo, Gideon Obhakhan has said that the All Progressives Congress (APC) will not impose any candidate in the State.
Obhakhan said besides, the leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Edo state, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, believes in democracy and democratic fairness.
He said the party’s interest in winning the election and providing developmental leadership in the state along popular lines can only be achieved by allowing the people decide their leader.
According to him, this has made the party aligned with the democratic reality and considerations which takes cognizance of age, capacity and regional diversity in the political development of the state viz-a-viz political fairness.
He maintained that developing Edo state remains paramount to the All Progressives Congress and only concession to Electoral processes for the emergence of candidates would be followed according to the dictates of the electoral law.
Recall that section 84 of the Electoral Act 2022 as amended states that “A political party seeking to nominate candidates for elections under this Act shall hold primaries for aspirants to all elective positions which shall be monitored by the Commission.
“The procedure for the nomination of candidates by political parties for the various elective positions shall be by direct, indirect primaries or consensus”.
Explaining the process further, the electoral act stated that for direct primaries, “a political party that adopts the direct primaries procedure shall ensure that all aspirants are given equal opportunity of being voted for by members of the party and shall adopt the procedure outlined.
“In the case of Presidential Primaries, all registered members of the party shall vote for aspirants of their choice at a designated centre at each ward of the Federation;
“The procedure in paragraph above of this subsection shall be adopted for direct primaries in respect of Gubernatorial, Senatorial, Federal and State Constituencies;
“The electoral law further maintained that, Special Conventions or Congresses shall be held to ratify the candidate with the highest number of votes at designated centres at the National, State, Senatorial, Federal and State Constituencies, as the case may be.
“For indirect primaries, the electoral law maintained that “the aspirant with the highest number of votes cast at the end of voting shall be declared the winner”.
Obhakhan said public opinion in the State favoured Edo Central and the party would not run against the opinion of the people who would vote in the election and determine the ultimate winner.
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