The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Working Committee (NWC) has nullified the disqualification of all aspirants by its Screening Appeal Committees.
Mr Olisa Metuh, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, announced this in Abuja and asked aspirants, who had been cleared by different screening committees for primary elections, to disregard any purported disqualification by the committees.
According to him, the announcement follows complaints by PDP members, especially aspirants across the country.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the screening appeal panels are neither authorised by our electoral guidelines nor by the constitution of the PDP to disqualify aspirants already cleared by the screening committees.
“In this regard, the NWC declares all such disqualifications by appeal panels null and void as they clearly violate laid down rules and the principles of natural justice and good conscience, ’’ Metuh said.
The national publicity secretary therefore directed all affected aspirants to ignore such disqualifications and move ahead with preparations for the party`s primaries.
In Rivers State, one of the aspirants affected by the rash of disqualifications, Tonye Princewill welcomed the party’s decision.
“Today the National Working Committee of my party the PDP, proved that there is still hope for the “little guy” in Nigeria. The suspicious disqualification and open betrayal of myself and other key members of the party resulting from a kangaroo screening was cancelled. This is a victory for democracy and a warning to politicians that politics in Nigeria can not be business as usual. I have finally been cleared to partake in the PDP guber primaries. Thank you for you prayers. They worked. He listened. But PDP needs to do more”, Princewill said in a press statement.
But he also charged the party to cancel what he called “the 419 kangaroo congresses for Rivers State”, believed to have done to favour aspirant Nyesom Wike.
” We have no clear and credible delegates list to decide our candidates from the house of assembly to the National Assembly to Governor”, he said.