DESPITE the confirmation of his ouster by the court, former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, has vowed to submit the name of Matthew Idurioyekemwen to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as the gubernatorial candidate of the party in Edo State.
Sheriff had organised a parallel congress which produced Idurioyekemwen as the flag bearer of the party after the primaries conducted by the National Caretaker Committee of the party in which Idurioyekemwen was defeated by Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu.
Sheriff, who spoke on Tuesday, when he presented certificate of return to Iduoriyekwemwen in Abuja, said he will be relying on last week’s judgement by Justice Okon Abang of Federal High Court in Abuja, which ordered the electoral body to accept nomination for the September 10 election from his faction of the PDP.
He said: “It is clear that from Abuja High Court that INEC is obliged to accept the candidate we are to present.
“You know ideally, most of our officials have travelled for Sallah. We need to do this because, the first working day we are going to submit our candidate’s form to INEC.
“I have to stay behind to do some of the things so as to ensure that the forms are submitted after the Sallah break,” Sheriff stated.
Also speaking, Secretary of the committee that conducted Sheriff’s factional Edo primary, Alhaji Ahmed Gulak, said a total of 677 delegates were accredited for the primary while 502 delegates voted.
According to him, out of this, Iduoriyekwemwen got 481 votes while his challenger stepped down for him.
Iduoriyekwemwen has now chosen former PDP National Woman Leader, Mrs. Herberta Okonofua-Ayo as his running mate.
The factional gubernatorial candidate denied that he was being sponsored by All Progressives Congress (APC) led Edo State government, promising to embark on grassroots campaign to restore PDP to power Edo State.
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