The National Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has dared the former governor of Bayelsa and supposed winner of the botched governorship primaries , Chief Timipre Silva to go to court.
“Mr Sylva can go to court because that is what the court is meant for,” the chairman said on Monday in Abuja.
The chairman made the statement while responding to newsmen who asked for his comments on Sylva’s claim that he won the botched primary. He said that the party had decided to conduct another primary on Sept. 29.
He added that the party’s National Working Committee deemed it fit to provide a level playing ground for all candidates who aspire to public offices in the party.
Odigie-Oyegun declared that the process that led to the Sept. 22 primary in Yenogoa did not meet the standard which the party had set for itself.
Addressing journalists after an emergency National Working Committee (NWC), meeting at the party’s secretariat, National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie Oyegun, said it as a duty to provide a level playing ground for all those who aspire to offices in this party, adding that the process that led to last Tuesday’s primary could not meet the standards which the party has set for itself.
“We had serious security challenges and so the process could not meet the standards which this party has set for itself and so we had no alternative but to stop the process by ensuring that the chairman of the panel was effectively moved out of the venue with the help of security agencies.
“We decided thereafter that there should be proper, fresh primaries, so today the party decided, we have written to INEC appropriately decided to conduct fresh primaries for the Bayelsa governorship election beginning tomorrow.
“We are getting in touch with the Inspector general of police and all the other security agencies to please assist us in ensuring effective security.”
When asked to respond to the threat by the former governor of Bayelsa state and one of the aspirants seeking the ticket Timipre Sylva’s, who claimed to have won the last primary election, the national chairman said that Mr. Sylva “can go to court because that is what the court is meant for.”
“The main issue that occupied us today at the NWC meeting had to do with the Bayelsa Governorship primaries; we want to make it very clear that as a party the APC guards very jealously its records of free and fair primaries.
“The NWC sees it as a duty to provide a level playing ground for all those who aspire to offices in this party, unfortunately, Bayelsa state, at Yenagao we had serious security challenges and so the process could not meet the standards which this party has set for itself and so we had no alternative but to stop the process by ensuring that the chairman of the panel was effectively moved out of the venue with the help of security agencies.
“We decided thereafter that there should be proper, fresh primaries. So today the party decided, we have written to INEC appropriately decided to conduct fresh primaries for the Bayelsa governorship election beginning tomorrow.
“We are getting in touch with the Inspector general of police and all the other security agencies to please assist us in ensuring effective security.