Senior Special Assistant to the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman on Local Government Affairs, Norbert Sochukwudinma, has accused Delta North Senator, Ned Nwoko, of staying away from the party.
PrimeTimes Nigeria reports that Nwoko lost the primary election to the immediate past governor of the state, Ifeanyi Okowa.
Nwoko had alleged that the results of the APC primaries in the region were manipulated by the State Government, claiming he was the rightful winner of the primary.
The lawmaker said the primary was conducted in about 98 wards and that he has video recordings from different areas, which, according to him, show that he had wider support.
He stated that he plans to submit the materials to the party for review.
Nwoko also explained that midway through the process, participants were informed that ward-level results would not be announced. Instead, they were told that final results would come from the national leadership of the party. He said this change created confusion among those involved in the exerciseise.
Reacting to Nwoko’s outburst on Wednesday in an interview on Arise Television, Sochukwudinma claimed that the lawmaker stayed away from the party but expected victory.
He said, “Nwoko stayed away from the party and expected victory.
Anyone seeking to win an election must engage with party structures, yet he never consulted the nine local government party chairmen or leaders.
“Only card-carrying APC members are eligible to vote, and party politics is not show business.
“From the available evidence, Senator Ned Nwoko was clearly defeated, and some of the results circulated online were fabricated and not official.
“In fact, I was surprised he even secured over 2,000 votes.”