The Labour Party has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission to postpone the Enugu East Senatorial election coming up on Saturday over the murder of her candidate, Honourable Oyibo Chukwu.
Chairman of the Labour Party, Barr. Julius Abure said the deceased was murdered and set ablaze alongside five other supporters of the party who were in the vehicle with him describing the murder as the climax of attacks on the party members and supporters
The Labour party noted in a statement made available to media men that this death has become one too many following the continual attacks on its members across the country.
The statement reads in part: “Barely 72 hours to the February 25, 2023, general election, our candidate for the Enugu East senatorial district, Honourable Oyibo Chukwu was gruesomely murdered and his remains set ablaze along with his vehicle.
“The gunmen according to reports also killed five of his supporters who were with him inside his car at Amechi Awkunanaw, Enugu South Local Government Area on Wednesday evening.
“It would be recalled that the Labour Party campaigns and political activities had been attacked on several occasions both in Enugu state and several other states
“The national leadership of the Labour Party is disturbed by the level of attack on its candidates, officials and supporters across the nation. We condemn the act and we call on the security agents to be on top of the matter. It is becoming a tradition where people attack our candidates all over the country.
“It would be recalled that our senatorial candidate in Ebonyi South, Hon Linus Okorie was kidnapped on his way to his house, in Ebonyi state on Sunday, October 16, 2022, allegedly by the personnel of the South East Vigilante outfit, Ebubeagu. He was tortured, incarcerated and denied his basic right for weeks.
“I want to also recall what happened to our party in Anambra State when our governorship candidate, Hon. Obiora Agbasimelo was kidnapped at the heart of the campaign and as I speak, nothing has been heard about him.
The chairman of the Labour party said “This killing in Enugu state is the climax of it all. This is certainly a threat to democracy and to the 2023 general election, where candidates are not secured and are killed.
“The Labour Party is therefore calling on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to postpone the election in Enugu East senatorial district to enable us to conduct a fresh primary and participate in the election.
“Enugu state is one of the states where our party enjoys maximum support and our candidate is on course to win the Enugu East senatorial seat in this election. We, therefore, believe that INEC should not allow people to benefit or win the elections through other means particularly, by silencing a candidate who is loved by his people.
“We insist that this development if allowed will have major consequences in the political development in Nigeria. No electoral victory is worth any person’s life; our institutions must not allow this to become a norm.
“We, therefore, call on our party members and supporters in Enugu state to remain calm even in the face of this outrageous provocation and also be law-abiding, as the party will do everything within its means to ensure that this killing is not swept under the carpet.
“Let me also condole with the immediate family of Honourable Oyibo Chukwu and the entire Labour party family over this painful loss and I pray that God will give us the fortitude to bear this loss.
Nigerian Tribune can report that the Electoral Act 2022 50} section 34 of the Electoral Act 2022 ad amended says that “If after the time for the delivery of nomination paper and before the commencement of the poll, a nominated candidate dies, the Chief National Electoral Commissioner shall be satisfied with the fact of the death, countermand the poll in which the deceased candidate was to participate and the Commission shall appoint some other convenient date for the election within 14 days.
Sub-section 2 further stated that “the list of voters to be used at a postponed election shall be the official voter’s register which was to be used if the election had not been postponed.
The Electoral Also held in section 34(3b) “in the case of election into a legislative House, the election shall start afresh and the political party whose candidate died may if it intends to continue to participate in the election, conduct a fresh primary within 14 days of the death of its candidate and submit the name of a new candidate to the Commission to replace the dead candidate.”
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