The APC has never had its governorship candidate in the state recognised by INEC since May 2022 when the party conducted its primary.
Less than a week to the 2023 general elections, the All Progressives Congress (APC) is still without a governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom State, according to the lists of candidates so far released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The Commission published the final lists of candidates for Presidential, Senatorial and House of Representatives elections on 20 September 2022, and Governorship and State House of Assembly elections on 4 October 2022.
INEC has also published four amendments to the final list between then and February.
"By virtue of the provision of Section 287 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), the list of candidates in respect of the affected constituencies are amended pursuant to the orders of court. Please note that the amended list supersedes the earlier publications on 20 September and 4 October 2022 in the affected constituencies," INEC said on its website.
However, the space for the name of the governorship candidate of the APC in Akwa Ibom remained blank as it were before now.
The APC has never had its governorship candidate in the state recognised by INEC since May 2022 when the party conducted its primary.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja had on 19 January set aside the judgment of a Federal High Court in Uyo, which nullified the nomination of Akanimo Udofia as the APC governorship candidate in the state.
The case was instituted by a former adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari, Ita Enang, who was an aspirant in the 26 May 2022 governorship primary of the party in the state.
One month after the appellate court ruling, INEC was yet to publish Mr Udofia's name as the APC candidate for the 2023 governorship election in the state.
INEC spokesperson, Festus Okoye, did not respond to request for comment on the matter when contacted on Saturday.
APC speaks on the matter
Despite not being recognised by INEC, Mr Udofia had commenced his governorship campaign in the state shortly after the court victory.
Spokesperson for the APC in Akwa Ibom, Otoabasi Udo on Sunday said he was unaware that INEC was yet to publish Mr Udofia's name as a candidate but said the development may be because of "administrative issues" at the Commission.
"When we (APC) had issues, Mr Udofia did not do his campaign but he's drawing strength from the Appeal Court judgment to campaign," Mr Udo, a lawyer, told PREMIUM TIMES.
Spokesperson of Mr Udofia governorship campaign council, Imoh Akpan, told PREMIUM TIMES there was a "lacuna" in the Court of Appeal judgment, which he said the APC was currently engaging INEC on.
"Although the Appeal Court ruled in favour of Mr Udofia, the appellate court did not expressly order INEC to publish Mr Udofia's name as the governorship candidate of the party in the state.
"That is one lacuna that was left in the judgment of the appellate court," Mr Akpan, a lawyer told PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday adding that listing and publishing of candidate's name was an "administrative responsibility of INEC."
Mr Enang, who instituted the case after losing at the Appeal Court had proceeded to the Supreme Court, asking it to declare him the governorship candidate of APC in the state on the basis that Mr Udofia was not a member of the APC at the time the primary was conducted.
"Our view is in accordance with the law that when it comes to the determination of who a member of a political party is, it is the party affairs, the court cannot decide on who a member of a party is," Mr Akpan, the spokesperson to Mr Udofia's campaign, said.
Mr Akpan told our reporter that the APC had filed a cross appeal at the Supreme Court against the demands of Mr Enang.
"The original appellant in the case rising from the appellate court decision is Mr Enang, the law requires that if we have issues with that appeal we should file a respondents appeal but giving the time that the Supreme Court has to treat pre-election matters the wise thing is what the APC has done - to file a cross appeal - an appeal upon the appeal of Mr Enang.
"The meaning is that we also have issues with some aspect of the appellate court judgment, the totality of the judgment was in favour of Mr Udofia but there are few details that we want "Supreme Court to make pronouncement on - asking INEC to publish Mr Udofia's name as the governorship candidate of the party.
"The candidature of a party is decided by that political party. Once a party holds a primary the outcome of that primary is that that party has a candidate," Mr Akpan said adding that "Mr Udofia is the candidate of APC but has not been recognised by INEC."
Backstory
INEC in Akwa Ibom had on 27 May 2022, a day after the APC governorship primary, sent a report to its headquarters in Abuja that the APC did not hold its primary.
"We wish to report that the APC governorship primary scheduled to hold on Thursday, 26 May 2022 at the Sheergrace Arena, Nsikak Eduok Avenue, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State did not hold at all," Mike Igini, the then resident electoral commissioner in the state had said in the letter.
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Mr Igini had led the monitoring team of the Commission in company of the police commissioner in the state to the venue to monitor the exercise but were informed that the APC election committee were held up by an angry group of party members who were engaging in a fight over the control of the material along a major road in Uyo.
The APC election committee members were later rescued by the State Security Services (SSS) who took them to their office that night.
Chairman of the election committee, Tunde Ajibulu had told Mr Igini on phone that he was unable to leave the SSS office because he was traumatised and could not go ahead with the primary.
Mr Igini, after briefing reporters on the development, left the venue of the primary at about 10:30 p.m., but the material was later released to a faction of the party who conducted the primary around midnight in a different venue.
Mr Udofia, who left the Peoples Democratic Party to join the APC in Akwa Ibom barely two weeks, was declared winner of the primary election.
INEC, who relied on the report of the exercise submitted by its state office in Uyo, had since then refused to recognise Mr Udofia as the governorship candidate of the APC in the state.
