THE All Progressives Congress (APC) National Working Committee has upheld the report of the Senator Hope Uzodimma screening panel which disqualified Rear Admiral Usman Oyibe Jibrin (rtd) and some of the aspirants seeking its ticket for the November governorship election in Kogi State.
The national publicity secretary of the party, Mallam Lanre Isa-Onilu conveyed the decision in a statement made available to newsmen.
The Senator Uzodimma six-man committee had cleared only four of the contenders for the race while it disqualified 12.
Those cleared were the incumbent governor, Yahaya Bello, Hassan Abdullahi, Engineer Abubakar Bashir, and Ekele Aishat Blessing.
But the Comrade Adams Oshiomhole-led national working committee at the end of its meeting increased the number of those cleared to nine
Those who lost out included Professor Mohammed Seidu Onaili, Usman Oyibe Jibrin, Mustapha Mona Audu and Rukkaya Ibrahim. Others were General Patrick Adenu Akpa, Babatunde Ayo Kunle Irukera, and Muhammed Abubakar Unukwu Audu.
The statement revealed that the decision was taken after it “has deliberated on the reports of the screening and appeal committees for the Party’s Kogi Governorship aspirants.
“After a comprehensive review of the submissions by the two committees, relying on the party’s guidelines and the provisions of the Electoral Act, nine aspirants were finally cleared to contest August 29, 2019, Indirect Governorship primary. Seven other aspirants did not meet the requirements for participation in the exercise.”
