The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has appointed Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura of Nasarawa State chairman of the Primary Election Committee to elect its flagbearer for the 2018 Ekiti State governorship election.
Amb. Fati Balla is also appointed to lead a three-member Primary Appeal Committee.
The two committees were inaugurated yesterday in Abuja by the APC’s National Organising Secretary, Sen. Osita Izunaso, on behalf of the National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun.
The primary election holds this Saturday, May 5.
The members of the five-man primary election committee include Hon. Magaji Aliyu (Secretary); Mr. Duke Oshodin; Barr. Robert Okwuego and Mr. Tunde Balogun.
The appeal committee members are Capt. Bala Jibrin (Secretary) and Mrs. Lilian Obenwa.
Izunaso, who inaugurated the committees at the party’s national secretariat, said the APC was poised to win the Ekiti governorship election.
While charging the primary election committee to ensure a transparent exercise, he pointed out that the party has no preferred candidate.
He urged the committee should rely on the party’s guidelines for the nomination of candidates for public office, particularly section 14 (iii) which stipulates the composition of the Electoral College/delegates, secret balloting at a venue in the state capital and declaring winner an aspirant with the highest vote.
“If we conduct a transparent primary, any aspirant that wins will surely become the next governor of Ekiti state… The party has no preferred candidate, there is no such thing in our lexicon. It does not exist. All aspirants are equal until after the election,” said Izunaso.
He added that the official delegates list had been given to all aspirants, stressing that no petition has been received on the list.
Izunaso, who said all 33 aspirants had been cleared by the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) to contest the primaries, urged the primary election committee to convene a stakeholders meeting with aspirants and party chieftains to agree on modalities for the primaries.
The chairman of the primary election committee, governor Al-Makura, who spoke on behalf of the committees, thanked the party for considering them worthy to carry out the assignment.
“As far as we are concerned, we consider this assignment as a family affair which has to be done in strict conformity with our Party’s guidelines and the constitution. I wish to assure the National Working Committee that by the special Grace of God, we as members of the Ekiti governorship primary will do justice to this exercise.
“We will ensure free and fair election, conformity and adherence to all the guidelines so that by the time the exercise is over, the Party will become stronger and more cohesive. This will be the beginning of the assurance of our great party to reclaim the mandate in Ekiti state,” the governor also said.
