An aspirant for the Ahiazu-Mbaise constituency seat in the Imo State House of Assembly under the platform of the All Progressives Congress, Ezechukwu Obinna, has rejected the outcome of the party’s primary election process in the state.
Obinna accused the APC of imposing a candidate on party members and alleged that aspirants were exploited through the sale of expensive nomination and expression of interest forms.
In a viral video circulated online, the aspirant expressed dissatisfaction over the conduct of the primary process in Imo State, insisting that the exercise lacked transparency and fairness.
According to him, six aspirants purchased forms to contest for the Ahiazu-Mbaise State Assembly seat, with each aspirant allegedly spending more than ₦10 million during the process after assurances from the party that an open primary election would be conducted.
“We were six aspirants who purchased forms from Ahiazu-Mbaise, and we spent over ₦10 million each in processing the forms. The party gave us hope that there would be an open primary,” he stated.
Obinna alleged that while aspirants were preparing for the primary election, reports emerged that another candidate had already been selected without any consultation or voting process.
He further claimed that the candidate allegedly chosen by the party had earlier contested and lost in the House of Representatives primary election.
“While we were preparing ourselves for the exercise, we heard that a woman who failed the House of Representatives primary had been selected as the candidate for the Ahiazu-Mbaise State Assembly seat,” he alleged.
The APC aspirant denied claims that aspirants agreed to a consensus arrangement, insisting that no meeting was held with Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, or the state party leadership before the decision was announced.
“There was nothing like consensus agreement. No meeting with the governor nor the state party chairman. All we heard was that the winner has emerged,” he said.
Obinna stated that he would have accepted the outcome if one of the six aspirants who purchased forms had emerged through what he described as a transparent and democratic process.
He disclosed that he spent over ₦100 million on his political campaign and activities within the party.
“I’m calling on the party and the governor of Imo State, who is the head of the party, to do the right thing and provide an opportunity for all the aspirants to test their popularity in the field.
“Anything short of this is unacceptable to me. I cannot spend over ₦100 million just to be discarded in this manner because I’m in the APC. This is ridiculous. This is unacceptable to me,” he stated.
