Anambra Guber Polls: Action Alliance To Challenge Candidate Exclusion In Court
There are indications that the Action Alliance party leadership may head to Court any moment to challenge the exclusion of Chief John Okechukwu Ikeotuonye, the Party’s candidate for the November 6, 2021 Anambra governorship polls.
An Action Alliance party chieftain has already decribed the purported move as “another rape on our democracy”.
This is coming barely 24 hours to publishing the names of candidates for the November 6, 2021 Anambra governorship election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as feelers have emerged alleging last minute plot by external forces to exclude Chief John Ikeotuonye as Action Alliance (AA) candidate for the election.
The external forces allegedly working with some INEC officers are said to have perfected a plot to adopt Ms Doris Maduka as AA candidate for the election with the sole plot of substituting her with one of the PDP governorship aspirants who lost out in the last primary to run under the AA platform.
Chief Ikeotuonye was had emerged as AA candidate at a keenly contested governorship primary conducted on July 1, 2021 by the ‘authentic’ National Chairman of AA, Chief Kenneth Udeze.
A chieftain of the AA who chose not to be mentioned said, “and as required by INEC guidelines, the authentic National Chairman and National Secretary of the Action Alliance, Chief Barr. Kenneth Udeze and Vernimbe A. James respectively submitted the name of our governorship candidate, John Okechukwu Ikeotuonye and his Deputy, Akabude Bonaventure Chimezie to INEC headquarters Abuja on July 5, 2021 and was duly acknowledged by the office of the Chairman of INEC.”
The source wondered why INEC was still reluctant to recognise Chief Udeze as the authentic National Chairman of AA despite a judgement by the FCT High Court of February 12, 2021 which quashed the purported national convention of the party in Osogbo in February 15 when his (Udeze) four years tenure was still subsisting and without a valid notice to the NEC of the party .
The chieftain also said: “And since the election of Barr. Kenneth Udeze and Vernimbe A. James as Action Alliance National Chairman and National Secretary respectively on 8th April 2017 and re-election on 14th March 2021, no Court has stopped us from parading ourselves as National Chairman and National Secretary of the party despite several unsuccessful attempts by some former members of the party who INEC is colluding with to destabilise our party.
“It May interest you to know that there is a pending matter at the FCT High Court Abuja erronously between Action Alliance V Barr. Kenneth Udeze and Vernimbe A. James where the depondent erronously on behalf of Action Alliance, is praying the Court to give an order stopping us from parading ourselves as National Chairman and National Secretary respectively of Action Alliance.
“The matter is still pending in Court as no Court order stopping us from parading ourselves as National Chairman and National Secretary of Action Alliance AA, hence we remain the Authentic and legitimate National Chairman and National Secretary of Action Alliance as no court has removed us.
“What is the interest od INEC in Action Alliance. INEC should do the needful by publishing John Okechukwu Ikeotuonye as the authentic governorship candidate of our Party, Action Alliance.”
