Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Delta South Senatorial district, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan has highlighted possible reasons he lost his appeal to Senator James Manager of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
The Appeal Court sitting in Benin, the Edo state capital had, on Monday, upturned the ruling of the Election Petition Tribunal which had in September ordered INEC to re-run the election that purportedly brought Manager to power the fifth time in 90 days.
Reacting to the ruling of the appellate court, the former governor of Delta state, Dr Uduaghan, said he had accepted the outcome of the judgement.
He observed that the appeal panel based its judgement on a pre-election matter which was introduced at the appellate court but was not addressed at the tribunal.
In a statement personally signed by him and made available to journalists, the APC stalwart fingered “enemy within” for the outcome of the court.
“The loss at the Appeal Court today (Monday) was as a result of a pre-election matter that the court entertained.
“This was a matter that was not addressed at the lower tribunal, which ought to be the first place that any prayer whatsoever relating to election matters should have been introduced.
“Well, the judiciary has had their say and I have accepted the outcome in good faith.
“I must put on record that it was a period of experiencing the “enemy within ” at another level,” the Itsekiri-born medical Doctor averred.”
He appealed to his numerous supporters across the senatorial district to raise their heads high and use the experience as a stepping stone to greater heights.
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In the statement titled: “The Journey Was Far More Important Than The Outcome,” the former governor noted that “There is no winning or losing” in the contest.
“It is no longer news that the outcome of today’s Appeal Court judgement did not go in my favour as the judgement of the Election Petition Tribunal in Asaba was set aside by the appellate court sitting in Benin city.
“I want to first appreciate everyone who was in the trenches with me throughout this journey. Please do not despair.
“There is no winning or losing, but rather the value is in the experience of imagining yourself as a character in whatever genre you’re involved in, whether it is politics or any other endeavour.
“I cherish the input of everyone -family, friends, political party, supporters and the good people of Delta South Senatorial District.
“I am happy that throughout the election and the tribunal, our peaceful process as a Senatorial District was tested. Recall I withdrew from the race in 2014 as a result of the threat to peace.
“In 2019, however, an itsekiri man could campaign freely in the Ijaw area and an Ijaw man could campaign freely in itsekiri area.
“Itsekiris voted for Ijaws, and Ijaws voted for Itsekiris. There was no case of violence anywhere. For me, this is a big victory for peace in our Senatorial District.”
The APC leader disclosed that he had formally called his opponent, Senator Manager to officially congratulate him on his victory at the Appeal Court.
“I have formally called my brother, Sen James Manager to congratulate him. My brother, Sen James E. Manager, congratulations once more on your victory. I wish you well as you represent our people at the hallowed chamber again.
“The contest is over now, it is in the past. I urge my supporters to put this behind them and focus on the future which holds a lot in store for all of us.”
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