Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Campaign Council for Edo Election has said the party would win the governorship election despite the recent court judgment against its candidate, Dr Asue Ighodalo.
The Chairman of the Council, Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa, stated this during the council’s inaugural meeting on Saturday in Abuja.
Fintiri said the party would appeal Thursday’s judgment of Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which he described as a temporary setback.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls Ekwo voided the Feb. 22 primary election that produced Ighodalo as its candidate.
The court voided the exercise on grounds that 378 delegates were unlawfully excluded from voting at the primary election.
“We are all politicians and the only thing we understand in politics is to win elections.
“That is why there is no second position in any election. You either win or you are lost. In this outing, we are out to win.
“Yes, there is a little setback, temporarily. God will see us through it. Anybody who peruse and look through the entire process will know it’s a child’s play.
“This will not stand in the court of law, particularly since we will be approaching the court of appeal. And that shouldn’t deter us.
“We will put more commitment; more work than we have not intended to do earlier so that we will put our detractors to shame. And this is what we know best,” he said.
Fintiri advised the members not to be deterred but to put in their commitment and sacrifice for the party’s victory in the election.
“The candidate has a lot of credibility with him. We can make him win if we are serious,” Fintiri said.
PDP National Legal Adviser, Kamarudeen Adebayo, also advised the council not to be distracted by the court ruling.
He noted that the Certified True Copy (CTC) on the ruling did not nullify the PDP primary election as made to believe.
He said the party in Edo had eight suits, of which the court had addressed seven in favour of the party.
According to him, the eighth case will also go in the same direction.
He said the Supreme Court had already ruled that issues related to delegates were purely internal affairs of political parties.
He says the National Assembly had also introduced the provisions of Section 84 (14) to say that only an aspirant who participates in an election or primary election can challenge the outcome.
“We had three cases before Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo on the same subject matter that has to do with the issue of delegates.
“He gave us judgments based on primary objections to say that they don’t have locus standi to even approach his court in two of the cases.
“We were taken aback and surprised that in the last case pending before him, he made a somersault.
“But just like I said, in the wisdom of the judge he saw that, maybe from a different angle.
“We should know that by the time we get to the Appeal Court, we’ll be able to put our records in proper perspectives. It’s not the first time we are handling this kind of matter.
“During the 2023 governorship election, we had similar issues that moved from a Federal Court to the Supreme Court, and we were victorious. The cases are there for everybody to see,” Adebayo said.
A former Edo governor, Chief Lucky Igbinedion, expressed confidence that the PDP would win the state election, noting that Ighodalo had already visited 192 wards to solicit support and votes.
Igbinedion assured that he would give his maximum support to the party to succeed in the state election.
In his remarks, Ighodalo said he knew the election would be difficult due to distractions but that victory for PDP was certain with the support of the council members and all.
He pledged that he and his running mate would work to make Edo remain a great state.
“And by God’s grace, when we get into government house, we will work so hard that our party will be more than proud that we’re the flagbearers, setting the trail.
“What we intend to do by God’s grace is to move Edo into a first-world state.
“We hope that by the grace of God and by the support of everybody in this room, we’ll fully achieve this task. It’s a task that must indeed be done,” Ighodalo said.
NAN reports that the event witnessed the division of the council members into nine committees.
Chief Francis Inegbeniki, immediate past Vice Chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Edo, and Musa Isiwele, former Deputy Commissioner of Police, who recently defected to PDP, were also introduced to members.
Both new members promised to work for the success of Ighodalo and PDP in the forthcoming election.