A Federal High Court in Abuja has declared the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primary election in Edo State, which produced Asue Ighodalo as its governorship candidate, invalid.
Justice Inyang Ekwo issued the ruling, stating that the primary election held on February 22, 2024, did not comply with electoral laws and party guidelines.
The court’s decision was based on the unlawful exclusion of 378 delegates who were supposed to participate in the election. Justice Ekwo said, “The provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 and the PDP Guidelines were violated during the conduct of the primary election at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin.”
The lawsuit leading to this judgment was filed by Kelvin Mohammed on behalf of the aggrieved delegates who were excluded from the voting process. The court ruled in their favor, nullifying the election results.
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Asue Ighodalo had won the contested primary, defeating other candidates, including former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu. However, this ruling means that the primary election results are now void and the party will need to address the issues raised by the court.
PDP will have to seek for deeper interpretation of the court to find out if the party can conduct another primary election so it can participate in the gubernatorial election. Also, the candidate and the party can proceed to the Appeal Court file for an appeal.