Anambra Election: APC, ADP, 9 Other Political Parties File Petitions Against Soludo

Not less than eleven political parties and their candidates have filed petitions challenging the victory of the candidate of All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, Mr Charles Soludo, in the November 6 governorship election at the Anambra Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Awka.

The Electoral Act stipulates that all petitions pertaining to any election must be filed on or before 21 days.

While it appeared that there will be no petition, the tribunal secretary, Mr Surajo Gusau, revealed on Wednesday that eleven petitioners were able to beat the deadline.

According to him, the petitioners filed the petitions between Monday and Tuesday.

He revealed the petitioners as Senator Andy Uba of the All Progressive Congress, APC, who is calling for a declaration that he won majority of the valid votes cast in the said election, the Action Democratic Party, ADP, and its candidate, Prince Adam Ume-Ezeoke who prayed the tribunal to nullify the election on the grounds that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, used in the election is not contained in the Electoral Act and that the malfunctioning of BVAS disenfranchised over ninety percent of the registered voters.

On his part, the Accord (A), with its candidate, Dr Godwin Maduka called for the nullification of the election on the ground of irregularities, while the United Patriots, UP, petitioned the tribunal on the grounds of wrongful exclusion of the party’s name from the ballot and called for the nullification of the election.

Other parties that filed petitions include the Green Party and the Action People’s Party APP.

The three-man panel of tribunal Judges are expected to arrive Anambra State early next week to begin sitting.

Reacting to the development in Awka, the Special Adviser to Governor Willie Obiano on Political Matters, Chief Ifeatu Obiokoye, told journalists that his party, APGA, was not losing sleep over the petitions.

“We shall take it as it comes and we are not losing sleep over those petitions.

“We do not lose sight of the game plan of a particular party and its candidate who is sponsoring some lesser political parties to go to tribunal and later withdraw from the suits and collapse into their benefactor at the end of the day.

“Our party, APGA, won the election and we are prepared to defend our mandate at the tribunal,” he said.