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The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has endorsed Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, for Saturday’s governorship election after the Court of Appeal upheld the nomination of Adebayo Olugbenga Adedamola as the party’s candidate.
The party disclosed this in a statement signed by the PDP Interim National Working Committee’s National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong.
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According to the statement, the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja also directed the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to include the PDP logo on the ballot for the August 15 election.
The party said the court upheld the nomination after ruling that the PDP had conducted its governorship primary, which was monitored by INEC, and forwarded the winner’s name to the commission.
“The panel of the Court held that the party having duly conducted primaries which were monitored by INEC, and the name of the winner forwarded to the commission, there was no legal impediment to the participation of the candidate in the elections,” the statement said.
The PDP said the court also ruled that the access code required for nomination on INEC’s portal was an administrative requirement which could not override the statutory requirement of submitting candidates’ names to the commission.
However, the party said it decided to support Adeleke of the Accord Party because of the limited time available for its candidate to campaign before Saturday’s election.
“To this end, faced with the unimaginable difficulty that this situation puts on us, the Interim National Working Committee has chosen not to throw its hands up in defeat,” the statement said.
The PDP said the decision followed consultations with key stakeholders and consideration that Adeleke was a former member of the party.
“We therefore ask all our members to vote for Governor Adeleke,” the statement added.
The party also urged its members to participate in the election, defend their votes and ensure that their votes count.
The PDP, however, accused INEC of bias and alleged that the commission had failed to recognise its candidate despite monitoring the primary that produced him.
The party said the situation had left its candidate without enough time to campaign for the election.
The PDP further called on Nigerians to reject violence and ensure that the outcome of the election reflects the wishes of voters.
“Elections must be a true reflection of the people’s wish, freely expressed through the ballot. Anything short of that is robbery and must not be allowed to stand,” the party stated.
