All Progressives Congress, APC, in Abia State has berated the Abia State Independent Electoral Commission, ABSIEC, for disqualifying some of her candidates from contesting the forthcoming Local Government elections in the state.
This is even as the immediate past secretary of the party in the state, Perfect Okorie said ABSIEC’s action amounted to contempt of court.
An Abia High court sitting in Aba had penultimate week restrained ABSIEC from disqualifying any candidate of APC from contesting the election.
However, while the matter was still pending in court, ABSIEC went ahead to disqualify some chairmanship and councillorship candidates of APC.
The APC in a statement issued on Saturday, Ddecember 12, 2020, by its caucus public relations officer in Abia North Senatorial Zone, Chibuike Jonas, described the action as unconstitutional, stating it was dead on arrival.
In the statement which reads in part, the APC said: “ABSIEC has once again shown not just Abians but Nigerians in general that they are not ready to conduct a free, fair and sincere election through the disqualification of some candidates of the APC.
“As a party, we need to state categorically and to remind Prof. Mkpa and his team that ABSIEC has no right to disqualify any candidate.
“This is stated clearly in the provisions of sections 31(1) and 83 of the Electoral Act, which provided that INEC cannot disqualify or reject a candidate nominated by a political party for an election.
Source: The Nation
