By Victor Nwegede, Abakaliki
The member representing Ebonyi Central Senatorial District, Senator Joseph Obinna Ogba on Saturday at his Abakaliki town campaign office presented his Certificate of Return to his supporters, arguing that his victory during the rescheduled PDP gubernatorial primary was not a jamboree as claimed by his alleged rival, Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii and cohorts.
Ogba in an interaction with journalists during the event substantiated the reality of his gubernatorial candidature under the PDP platform in Ebonyi State and maintained that nobody would intimidate him by snatching his mandate through the backyard.
He expressed happiness that the case about the outcome of the gubernatorial primary is in the court, believing that everything would be addressed by the court.
"Ebonyi and Nigeria as a country have not turned into a banana republic, where somebody will just wake up and start claiming something. I have just told my supporters, that court doesn't belong to one person. The court belongs to all of us, both the rich, the poor, the old and the young.
"So, I'm happy that the matter is in the court and we have to iron out it there. The court will look at it, and know who is at fault. But one thing I know is that nobody can intimidate me or take away the mandate given to me by our great party from the backyard, it's not possible. No matter how they gang up against me, they can't succeed," Ogba said.
He insisted on the validity of the primary elections of June 4 and 5 that produced him and other candidates of the party.
The Senator further dismissed claims made by the former Chairman of the party in the state, Sila Onu, that the primaries were not monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as required by law.
According to him, the primary elections were duly and fully monitored by officials of the INEC, asking if the electoral body has ever denied monitoring the exercise.
He advised his supporters and people of Ebonyi State to disregard the claims, describing them as mere noise undeserving of attention.
He applauded the delegates of the party and stakeholders for placing their confidence in him.
He also thanked other contestants in the gubernatorial primary election for demonstrating what he described as true sportsmanship and promised to run an inclusive government if elected Governor in 2023.
“I was supposed to have addressed you before now but I left for Abuja immediately after the elections. You are aware that my party, the PDP has issued me with a certificate of return as the authentic gubernatorial candidate of PDP in Ebonyi.
“However, a day after the submission of my results and certificate of return issued to me, we heard that someone went to court to challenge our primaries.
“The truth is that the court does not belong to one person. We have appealed the judgement. And I want to tell my supporters not to panic because nobody can intimidate me or take away the mandate that the people of Ebonyi state gave to me.
“In a nutshell, I am grateful to PDP delegates for casting their votes for me. I also thank my opponents who have since extended congratulations and pledged to work with me to ensure victory in 2023” he said.
