A leading pro-democracy and non-governmental body – HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has tasked the Comrade Adams Oshiomhole – led All Progressives Congress (APC) not to arbitrarily substitute the name of Senator Hope Uzodinma, the winner of the originally accredited governorship primary poll conducted by an erstwhile presidential Adviser Alhaji Ahmed Gulak to suit the selfish bidding of governor Rochas Okorocha who is fighting tooth and nail to railroad his Son-in-law Uche Nwosu as his successor next year.
Besides, the Right group has lampooned the governor of Imo state Mr. Rochas Okorocha for seeking to convert the state to his family business empire by seeking to use the back doors to impose his son-in-law Mr. Uche Nwosu as his successor against the overwhelming will of the people of Imo state who are opposed to the personalization of government positions. HURIWA challenged President Muhammadu Buhari to demonstrate that he is not a supporter of impunity by ensuring that the real winner of the first governorship primary conducted by Ahmed Gulak Senator Hope Uzodinma is sent to the Independent National Electoral Commission as the APC candidate in the forthcoming governorship poll.
The Rights group said it was laughable that the Imo state governor is actively depleting the scarce resources of the state to supplant his son-in-law as governor; make himself a senator and his wife as a member of the Federal House of Representatives as if to say the state has become his family business asset.
In a statement by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director Miss Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA affirmed that the hierarchy of All Progressives Congress (APC) would do great harm to the principles of transparency, accountability and integrity should the national chairman allow himself to be blackmailed into dropping the authentic winner of the governorship primary election in Imo state Senator Hope Uzodinma for the hand-picked choice of the governor and his son-in-law who is expected to cover up any traces of alleged financial indiscretions of the current Imo state administration for the last eight years.
“We support the call for probity in the administration of political parties as canvassed by the wife of the president Mrs. Aisha Buhari who has unambiguously criticized the reign of impunity in the highest echelon of the ruling party. We hereby asked president Buhari to stamp his authority and ensure that the result of the primary conducted by the Ahmed Gulak – led officially accredited committee is upheld. It is imperative that the ruling party respects the time honoured principle of integrity and honesty by ensuring that results of primary conducted by the officially recognized panel especially in Imo state stands and not unwittingly manipulated.”
HURIWA stated also that: “From credible sources and according to information circulated by the media, Senator Hope Uzodinma reportedly defeated Governor Rochas Okorocha’s in-law, Uche Nwosu to win the All Progressive Party’s gubernatorial ticket for next year’s election.
HURIWA recalled that the media reported that Senator Uzodinma polled 423,895 votes to pick the party’s ticket in the election conducted on Tuesday. Nwosu came seventh with just 10, 329 votes. The result was signed by the returning officer, Ahmed Ali Gulak.
HURIWA said the sanctity of that electoral process must be respected just as natural justice and ethics demands that the leadership of APC ought to have led the process of investigating the alleged threats to the life of the primary election panelists sent for the first time by the national hierarchy of the party following reports that Gulak had disappeared after declaring the winner of the primary election in the state.
This disappearance, HURIWA Quoted the media was after he had addressed newsmen about 11.30 Monday night, where he announced the postponement of the election to Tuesday. Gulak was said to have absconded from his hotel room, leaving other members of the committee behind.
HURIWA expressed shock at the level of insensitivity shown by the hierarchy to the claims made by the Chairman of the primary election panel that the party had initially delegated to carry out the primary election in Imo state but some persons including the Imo state governor ate clandestinely busy trying to substitute the winner with the Son-in-law of the outgoing governor of Imo state.
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