BY EVELYN AMADI
There is anxiety in the political landscape in the South East, especially in Imo State, as public office seekers, who took part in dual or invalid primaries may not eventually make the final list of candidates to be published by the nation’s electoral umpire, INEC, on September 20, 2022.
However, INEC had on Friday, June 24, released names of valid nominated candidates.
The omission of the names of Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, from the Commission’s list of valid Senatorial candidates, after their names were submitted to INEC by their political party- the All Progressives Congress, APC, has generated mixed concerns.
The trio had participated in the presidential primary of the All Progressives Congress, APC and lost to former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu.
After their defeat at the presidential primary, Umahi, Akpabio, Lawan were listed as senatorial candidates by the APC and their names submitted to INEC.
The Commission on Friday, released the names of senatorial candidates omitting the names of the trio, raising concerns that those who took party in dual primaries may be disqualified by the commission’s in September, when INEC is expected to publish the final list of Senatorial candidates.
In Imo State, several aspirants who lost the party’s Senatorial primaries in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and the All Progressives Congress, APC, had crossed over to the Labour Party, where they emerged as “candidates”.
Prominent among them, is Senator Ezenwa Onyewuchi, who crossed over to the Labour party, where he emerged the party’s Imo East Senatorial candidate, after losing the PDP Imo East Senatorial primary to Uche Onyeagocha.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday, an INEC National Commissioner, Festus Okoye, was silent if candidates who took part in dual primaries in two political parties will get the Commission’s boot.
He however said the commission is not obligated to publish the name of candidates that did not emerge from valid party primaries.
“If a political party submits to the Independent National Electoral Commission the name of a candidate that did not emerge from party primaries or did not emerge from valid party primaries, the commission is not obligated to publish the name of such a candidate,” he said.
However, Mr Okoye noted that INEC has not published the final list of validly nominated candidates.
“The final list of validly nominated candidates will be published by the Independent National Electoral Commission on the 20th day of September, 2022. And that is for presidential and national assembly candidates.
“What the Commission has published, as of today, complies with Section 29(3) of the electoral act which says that the moment political parties comply with the provision of Section 29 (1) of the electoral act in terms of the submission of its validly nominated candidates, that the Commission shall publish the personal particulars of such candidates in the constituencies where the candidates intend to contest election.
“In other words, for instance for a senatorial candidate, if a senatorial district covers four local governments, we will publish the personal particulars of such a candidate in the four local governments.
“So that is exactly what we have done. And we published the personal particulars of candidates that emerged from valid party primaries. And that’s what the law says we should do.
“So, if the name of any candidate was not published, or if the personal particulars of any candidate was not published today, the implication is that such a candidate did not emerge from valid party primaries.” he said.