DELTA State All Progressives Congress (APC) leader, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, has commended the peaceful conduct of the party’s Ward congress held all over the country, Saturday, with a verdict that it was generally peaceful across Delta State.
Speaking to journalists immediately after the Congress at his Evwreni Ward 8, Emerhor disclosed that party faithful in the ward had a consensus arrangement which has produced the candidates of their choice, but said; “in other places, there may be multiple candidates but, we called on party faithful to vote their choice peacefully.”
According to him;”The leadership of the party is doing its best to ensure nothings are done the way they ought to be done, people should come out and vote for the candidate they want”.
The Congress, which held at the APC party secretariat in Evwreni began with accreditation of aspirants with a large turn out of party faithful who later queued behind each of the consensus candidates in a very peaceful manner with Mr Sunday Igboya emerging as the ward chairman.
Speaking further, Chief Emerhor noted that compared to information he has gathered from other states, the exercise in Delta State so far could be adjudged as peaceful.
He disclosed that in one of the wards, materials for the congress were stolen, but that it did not deter them from conducting the congress.
He, however, observed that the poll experienced some delay; “I must say that because of the timing of delivery of materials, and the short time for aspirants to obtain and fill their forms even as at today people were still collecting nomination forms to fill.
“Another challenge was to get people who will conduct the election because they want to satisfy all stakeholders to avoid allegation that some people have hijacked the process, this took time also. So, the reason from what I understand that cause us to experience the delay in the startup of the elections.
“Apart from these little challenges, the election is going very well, even as we speak, the election is still ongoing from the information I got.
“There also an incident I understand that, some people want to frustrate the exercise broke into the hotel and stole some sensitive materials, but their action was not enough to put a stop to the election, fortunately, the materials have not left, so those they stole, was thanking note of, in order to citify them.
“We understand that it resulted from sheets that were stolen; you know politicians are always in the habits of stealing the result, but that is under check.
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On the uproar over the choice of centers for the conduct of the Congress, Emerhor explained that competing for interest in the party were giving conflicting directive, but the party election guideline stated that the congress committee should decide the venue, and the first option is party secretariat at the Ward, unless where it’s not conducive, stakeholders will agree on venue.
Meanwhile, Chief Emerhor, while speaking on the murder of a chairmanship aspirant, said “I’ve not gotten the information that people who belong to my interest group did it. I’m not aware of this.”
The business mogul added that when the incident allegedly took place, election materials had not arrived the venue, wondering how the deceased could have been in possession of what had not been made available.
He denied the existence of factions in the party in the state because there’s only one executive.
“There can’t be a faction when we all know that there’s only one executive of the party in the state.
“What I can tell you is that there are two tendencies in the party. And these two tendencies are trying to compete to see who’s stronger or more on the ground using the Congress.
‘The tendency of Ogboru/Omo-Agege who just joined the party and what I can call my tendency which is an aggregation of about six governorship aspirants and other leaders of the party who have come together to work at the unity list of the aspirants that we want to support.
“These are the two interest groups in the party and this is normal,” the former APC governorship candidate insisted.
While affirming that the Saturdays Congress was largely a success in the state, Chief Emerhor said the delay in the arrival of materials, aspirants’ late payment and obtainment of nomination forms, as well as hitches as regards getting the people to conduct the election affected the exercise, although sparingly.