A House of Representatives aspirant for the Ughelli North/Ughelli South/Udu Federal Constituency of Delta State, Julius Akpovoka, has raised the alarm over an alleged plot to manipulate the results of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) primary election in the constituency.
Akpovoka, who spoke at a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday, claimed that he emerged victorious in the NDC primary election but alleged that the committee that conducted the exercise was attempting to alter the results in favour of another aspirant.
He therefore called on the national leadership of the party to prevail on the Delta State chapter of the NDC and the committee to ensure that the results of the primary election are not tampered with, in order to protect the integrity of the process and the party.
“My appeal is for the committee to do the right thing and reflect what transpired on the field by putting my name as the winner. They should not manipulate the figures and destroy the party’s reputation.
The party today is anchored on integrity.
“That integrity must be demonstrated by those sent to conduct this election. They should not alter the figures and announce results that do not reflect what happened,” Akpovoka stated.
According to him, “All the votes were counted, and based on the count, I recorded the highest number of votes in Ughelli North, where I scored 1,205 votes. My closest rival, Chief Dr Christopher, scored 205 votes. The other aspirant’s supporters left after they realised the contest was essentially between the two of us.
“In Ughelli South, the same thing happened. I scored 350 votes, while Christopher scored 285 votes. The returning officer there was Victor Ohare, who was once my colleague as a councillor. I was surprised to see him at the venue.
“In Udu, I scored 283 votes, while the highest vote recorded by another aspirant was 305. He defeated me there by about 20 votes.
“When you add the figures from the three local government areas together, I scored a total of 1,840 votes, while Christopher scored 560 votes and the third aspirant scored 315 votes. That is the complete summary of the results.”
Akpovoka acknowledged assurances reportedly given by the national leader of the NDC, Senator Seriake Dickson, and former Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege that the right thing would be done regarding the conduct of the primaries.
The House of Representatives aspirant expressed confidence that if declared the party’s candidate, he would defeat the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the constituency.
“My opponent and I contested an election before when we were both in the APC. I won that primary election, but what is being attempted now is similar to what happened then. My name was eventually placed on the ballot in 2019 after I won the primary.
“In terms of popularity, voter mobilisation and outreach, he is nowhere near me. The party knows that I have the capacity, character and competence to win the election.
“To me, the APC is not a match in my federal constituency. If I get the ticket, I am confident of winning the election comfortably,” he added.
