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Samuel Ogidan
Senator Ned Nwoko has challenged the National Leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to protect the mandate freely given to him by party members of the Delta North Senatorial District.
Sen. Nwoko further challenged the APC leadership to demonstrate its commitment to justice, fairness, and transparency by resisting any pressure aimed at overturning his mandate.
Nwoko, in a statement by his media office in Abuja, said that it would amount to unresisted callousness to subvert the clearly expressed wishes of party members in his Senatorial District through the substitution of genuine votes with manufactured and dubious figures being promoted by his opponents.
Senator Nwoko, in his statement, maintained that he won the APC Senatorial Primary Election conducted across the Delta North Senatorial District by a wide margin, securing approximately 123,000 votes against the 6,000 votes garnered by former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa.
He admonished that any attempt to overturn the wishes of thousands of APC members who participated in the primary election would amount to a disregard for their democratic rights and could negatively affect the fortunes of the party in Delta North.
He said: “Subverting the mandate freely given by APC members who turned out in large numbers to participate in the primaries would amount to an abuse of their wishes and sensibilities. Such an action could undermine the confidence of party members and supporters who believe in the democratic process.”
He urged the National Working Committee (NWC) and the National Leadership of the APC to ensure that justice is done and seen to be done by protecting the integrity of the primary election process and respecting the mandate freely given by APC members across the Delta North Senatorial District.
According to him, the outcome of the exercise can be independently verified through extensive video evidence obtained from the wards where the primaries were conducted.
“I defeated Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa overwhelmingly in 97 of the 98 wards, and I have video evidence from across the district to support the outcome. Are authenticated video recordings from 98 wards not more credible than figures allegedly concocted by a panel appointed by the governor who is openly working for Okowa?” Senator Nwoko queried.
The Senator urged the APC National Leadership to uphold the party’s rules and traditions of fairness by disregarding what he described as manufactured narratives and ensuring that the final declaration accurately reflects the choice made by APC members across Delta North.
“The future of our party in Delta North depends on the confidence of our members that their votes count and that their voices will not be silenced by political manipulation. I trust the National Leadership of our great party to uphold the truth, protect the democratic process, and affirm the mandate freely given to me by APC members across Delta North,” he said.
The overwhelming support he received from APC members, he said, was a reflection of their confidence in his legislative performance and his commitment to advancing the interests of Delta North, particularly his sustained advocacy for the creation of Anioma State.
Senator Nwoko also emphasized his longstanding commitment to the APC, noting that he joined and worked for the party well before the defection of former Governor Okowa and other political actors from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He firmly rejected what he described as a “self-imposed and propagandist declaration of victory” by former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, arguing that such a declaration violates established party procedures.
The Senator recalled that before the primary election, the APC National Organising Secretary had clearly outlined the official process for collation and declaration of results, including ward collation, local government area collation, constituency collation, and final submission to the party’s National Headquarters.
“The authority to collate, authenticate, and declare the results of the primary election rests solely with the appropriate organs of the APC National Leadership. Any premature declaration of victory is contrary to party guidelines and amounts to an attempt to influence public perception ahead of the completion of due process,” he stated.
