A chieftain of the People ’s Democratic Party in Imo State, Lancelot Obiaku, has petitioned the National Chairman of the party ,Uche Secondus, over alleged irregularities that marred the delegates election in the state.
Obiaku said the delegate election which was conducted by a panel headed by a former minister of aviation , Osita Chidoka , was characterised by manipulation of the original list and snatching of electoral materials.
He called on the PDP’s national working committee to ensure that those he described as unpopular politicians did not hijack the party structure in the state .
The politician maintained that the attempted burning down of the party secretariat in Owerri on Thursday was perpetrated by those he described as “ desperate politicians . ”
The petition reads in part , “ it is today a statement of fact than a mere illusion that PDP is not just primed to wrestle power at the centre from the ruling APC and chief oppressors of Nigerians, it is hoped that, all things being equal, the party will take over the leadership of most states of the federation come 2019 .
“ However, in Imo State such hopes might be diffusing into thin air if drastic measures are not taken to arrest an emerging monster capable of once again denying Imo PDP a passage to the state’ s government house . The lightning might just be striking again .
“ I am certain that you are aware that Imo PDP is boiling after the events of the last few days . Following the conclusion of the three Ad-hoc Ward Delegates ’ Congress last Sunday, your party’s state secretariat in Imo on Wednesday turned to a protest ground. ”
It added, “ Several members of the party from a number of wards who were voted delegates on Sunday with their names submitted to the congress committee are shocked and disenchanted that their names were obliterated and replaced with other names in the result released by the committee on Tuesday . It was discovered that in some wards , names were replaced with people who do not belong to that ward; the worst of it being that names of persons who did not purchase the delegate nomination form were found on the result sheets.”
He urged Secondus to ensure that imposition of candidate which he argued remained the monster that killed the party’ s chances in the state in 2007 and 2015 was not the order of the day for the 2019 election .
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