The Senator representing Ebonyi Central Senatorial zone, Senator Obinna Ogba, has been declared winner of the rescheduled Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary election held in Ebonyi on Sunday, June 5, 2022.
Meanwhile, Ifeanyichukwu Odii had earlier emerged the governorship candidate of the Party before it was cancelled and rescheduled.
Odii had insisted that he remains the authentic candidate of the Party, maintaining that the rescheduled primary was an illegality.
Ogba got a total of 253 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Hon. Anayo Nwonu who scored 110 votes.
Meanwhile, all other fives aspirants from Izzi clan collectively scored below half of Ogba’s vote.
The Izzi clan had contended that the position should be zoned to Ebonyi North so as to maintain the rotational sequence in the state.
But all the five aspirants from the zone refused to yield to a consensus candidate including two brothers who contested for the governorship seat which paved way for the emergence of a candidate from Ebonyi Central zone.
According to the Chairman of the Electoral Panel, Mr Chris Okolo, the other five Izzi aspirants scored as follows; Dr Sylvester Ogbaga got 66; Mr Fidelis Nwankwo garnered 44 votes; Chief Chukwuma Nwazunku, representing Ebonyi/Ohaukwu federal constituency polled six votes and his elder brother, Augustine Nwazunku polled one vote; Chief Austin Edeze got three votes; while only woman Aspirant, Professor Adaeze Nwuzor did not score any vote.
The Electoral Chairman who further explained that a total of 14 invalid ballots were recorded, added that Chief Ifeanyichukwu Odii who boycotted the polls got one vote while Mr Chris Usulor and Dr Sunday Opoke abstained from the gubernatorial primary election.
“Therefore, I, Mr Chris Okolo having been conferred with the power to chair this panel hereby declare Sen. Obinna Ogba winner, having polled the total highest number of valid votes and having met all the requirements for the election and he is hereby returned elected.
“The exercise was counted openly and witnessed by agents of the aspirants, leaders of the party present as well as security agents,” Okolo said.
In an interview, Ogba extended hands of fellowship to the other contestants declaring his victory as victory for the PDP.
He thanked the delegates, party members and leaders of PDP for entrusting him with their mandate to fly the party’s flag in the state Governorship election in 2023.
“I feel very happy, I thank the Almighty God who made the event very successful; I thank all our party members for finding me worthy to fly the flag of our great party, the PDP,” he said.
Also in an interview, the State Party Chairman, Tochukwu Okorie, commended the party delegates for peaceful and orderly conduct throughout the exercise.
Okorie also commended the electoral panel for conducting a seamless, peaceful, transparent and credible exercise and urged those who lost to team up to ensure victory for the party at the 2023 general elections.
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