The House of Representatives primary elections of the All Progressive Congress, APC, in Abia State has been rocked by logistics challenges and reports of intense lobbying.
The exercise, scheduled to commence on Saturday morning, is yet to start in any part of the state as at 3:00 pm.
A visit by DAILY POST to several wards where the primary elections were supposed to hold in Umuahia showed that no party official was on duty.
At Amuzukwu Secondary School, Umuwaya Amuzukwu, Methodist Primary School at Crowther Street, Umuahia North Local Government Headquarters, no official of the APC or the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, staff was seen.
Two female police officers who were deployed to provide security in Umuwaya Amuzukwu were left in confusion as they could not meet any APC official at the centre.
Source disclosed that some of the aspirants in various constituencies in Abia State refused the offer to step down before the primares, insisting that they be allowed to test their popularity in the exercise.
Meanwhile, two leaders of the City Boys Movement in Abia State, Chinedu Orji and Lucky Igbokwe, who are aspiring for the Ikwuano/Umuahia Federal Constituency, have issued statements maintaining that they are firmly in the race.
Explaining the delay in the commencement of the APC primary election, Publicity Secretary of Abia State APC, Uche Aguoru, attributed the situation to logistics challenges.
Aguoru invited all House of Representatives aspirants and other party stakeholders to an “emergency mandatory meeting” to be held at APC new office by Saturday evening.