Deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha has denied hijacking penultimate weekend’s delegate congress of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) held in Imo State.
In a press statement issued by the director general of his campaign organisation, Dr Chris Okewulonu and made available to newsmen, the deputy speaker described the petition written to the national leadership of the party by some aspirants of the party as a statement of misgiving against the electoral panel that conducted the election.
He disclosed in the statement that he never manipulated the ward congress election as alleged by the aspirants in their petition and publications in some national dailies, rather restricted himself to his ward where he casted his vote for the delegate of his choice.
The statement further described the media report as a bundle of inconsistencies, false innuendos and outright misrepresentation of what transpired in the said election in the state.
According to the statement, part of the petition claimed that the Electoral Panel withheld the original result sheets and distributed photocopies instead to the various wards while the result sheets were rewritten in a hotel.
While asserting that the claims by the aspirants were contradictory to their earlier claim of the election not conducted in over 90 per cent of the wards in the state, thereby requesting for cancellation in 15 wards, it wondered why the aspirants did not call for the cancellation of the remaining 12 wards in the state.
“They claimed that reports gathered from all over the state showed that elections did not take place in over 90 per cent of the wards, then in another breadth, they requested for cancellation of elections.
in 15 local governments where no form of election was held”. How come the petitioners are asking for a repeat in only 15 LGAs? What about the other 12 LGAs? Are they calling for cancellation and fresh congresses in areas where they lost and want the results upheld in their strongholds” the release stated.
Ihedioha, therefore urged the aspirants to close ranks in the spirit of brotherliness and decorum to help achieve the aim of sending the opposition party parking in the state, maintaining that his early state consultation across the state is his stronghold.
