Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti State has maintained that the judgement of the Court of Appeal at Ilorin has not indicted the party of engaging in any electoral malpractice, saying the appellate court had only based its decision on non-usage of blue biro to mark voters cards.

According to a statement made available to newsmen in Ado Ekiti yesterday by the party's Director of Pulicity and Strategy, Mr Jackson Adebayo blamed some people over what he described as the upturning of the verdict of the court of appeal.

"It has become imperative at this point in time to educate those who have chosen to always comment on issues they know little or noting about particularly in the case of the recent judgment of the Court of Appeal Electoral Tribunal on April 14th, 2007 governorship election in Ekiti State.

"As it is no more news that the tribunal has ordered for the re-run of the election in 64 wards of ten local government of the state so also is it no more news that all the wards were won by the People's Democratic Party.

The party was particularly irked with the comment attributed to the Afenifere faction, otherwise known as Afenifere Renewal Group over the judgement of the Court of Appeal, saying the group may have not averted itself with the judgement of the appellate court

"It is necessary to state that it is not only appalling but perfidious that a group from Yoruba socio-political organization; Afenifere with the name, Afenfere Renewal Group was not patient enough to study the judgment before it came out with its comment on such a fundamental issue of national importance.

"If the group had prepared to prove some level of ingenuity it would have based its comment on the conclusion of the Appeal Tribunal judges rather than premising their observation on the augments of the counsel to the Action Congress in the judgment.

I stated that the appeal court has not ruled that there was "rigging or stolen of mandate in the judgment; rather the premises upon which the re-run was ordered was because of the use of other colour of biro than blue as stipulated in the electoral manual.

"The statement of Engineer Segun Oni, the victim of the red biro usage was there for study and education before anybody make conclusion again.

The party, however, boasted that the issue of re-run of election would be a walk-over for the PDP, since "all the areas where the election are to take place are PDP strongholds.

"Even with the noise of the Action Congress that it is leading in the remaining figures, should it not be a concern that the party could only boast of 6,802 lead in its strongest base".