Kalu’s election petition: Abia North reject Ohuabunwa’s victory, take swipe on Tribunal judgment

www.odogwublog.com reports that Abia North indigenes, Abia State have taken a swipe at the judgment of the National and State Assemblies Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia in which Mao Ohuabunwa of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) was returned as senator for Abia North by the Tribunal.

Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) had dragged Ohuabunwa who was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to the Tribunal seeking to nullify the declaration.

In its ruling yesterday, the Tribunal upheld INEC’s declaration of Ohuabunwa, ruling residents of Aba faulted.

Reacting, John Igwe Ochu from Ohahia, but resident at the Amamong axis of Aba said during the election, he and others travelled home to cast their votes and stated that the INEC declaration and the consequent Tribunal’s affirming does not reflect the wishes of the people.

“We are not surprised at what is happening at the Tribunal at all because after the election what they were after was for them to be declared winner in the first place, thereafter they would sort themselves out at the Tribunal.”

Ijioma Igu from Bende wondered how someone who came a distant third in an election could be declared winner by INEC and the declaration was subsequently allowed by the Tribunal.

“With this development, there is no hope for the country because in Abia, we never voted for PDP because of their misrule in the past eight years. We voted for change, but INEC came up with something else and when we thought the Tribunal would right the wrongs of INEC, the drama is continuing”, he said.   

 “We would have been happy and in jubilant mood if the Tribunal had done the wishes of majority of the people and declared Kalu the winner because I repeat, we did not vote for PDP in the last election.

He however said that all hopes were not lost and he advised OUK to go to Appeal Tribunal where he was optimistic that the former governor of the state will get justice.
 
 “We are happy that the Appeal Tribunal is there to correct the mistakes made by the Tribunal and I’m advising OUK to approach the higher Tribunal to get back his mandate.

Igu said despite the evil machinations of some political desperados in the state, OUK would still have victory at last.