ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Ikechi Emenike, the Abia State gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has petitioned the election tribunal challenging the outcome of the poll.
Emenike says he should be declared winner of the governorship election, saying that he is the only qualified candidate.
Recall that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), had on 22 March, 2023 declared Dr. Alex Otti of the Labour Party, LP as winner of the poll contested by 18 flagbearers.
But Emenike, in his petition before the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, contests that the Governor-elect, Otti and the other main candidates that participated in the race were not qualified.
He said Otti’s candidacy was incompetent as he was not a member of LP when he contested the governorship poll having joined to the party lately before the poll.
In the case of the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Okey Ahiwe, who came second in the poll, Emenike contends that he (Ahiwe), had not relinquished his position as chief of staff to the Abia governor before he emerged as replacement candidate.
Furthermore, Emenike has alleged that the governorship candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), Enyinnaya Nwafor, was unfit to have become the party’s candidate having participated in the PDP governorship primary.
Emenike, therefore, asked the tribunal to make a declaration to the effect that the candidates presented by other political parties were not qualified to have contested for the Abia governorship seat on 18 March, 2023.
He stated that he remains the only qualified candidate for the governorship flag bearer and urged the tribunal to declare him the rightful winner of the Abia governorship election.