Edo PDP Aspirants Protest Outcome of Assembly Primary in the State.

PROTESTERS

BENIN CITY-Protests on on Thursday trailed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primary in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State as some of the aspirants who lost called for cancellation of the election.

They also asked the immediate resignation of the party senatorial leader, Mr. Lucky Imasuen, following what they described as the ignoble role he allegedly played to screw the result in favour of certain persons.

In a protest letter signed by Clifford Igbinoba, Jefferson Uwoghiren, Patricia Ero, Festus Okpiaebe, Osahon Imaru, Sunny Erengbo and Edobor Oghosa which was made available to journalists in Benin City, the state capital, they further called for the immediate constitution of an interim committee to run the affairs of the party in the local government chapter before next congress.

The aggrieved PDP aspirants alleged that the entire process of the party primary was characterised by unwholesome interference and coercion of delegates, financial inducement, substitution of delegates, violence against aspirants, blackmail and removal of perceived rigid ward chairmen.

According them, “We chose to participate in the exercise in the mistaken belief that the party was ready to turn a new leaf and shed its reprehensible records of imposition of candidates, but Imasuen, for selfish and personal reasons, threw spanner in the whole process, and in one week, wiped off rising goodwill the party had gained in the past months.

“From his command and control centre, Iyakogba, Benin City, he was threatening and directing delegates to vote for persons and dishing out a campaign of calumny against aspirants he had penciled down in his political black book.”

But is a swift reaction, Imasuen denied all the allegations against him, asking if he has become so powerful as to be the one to singularly decide who should emerge in the party primary in the locality.