03-22-2019, 09:07 AM
Election: Omo-Agege Was Never APC Candidate — Emerhor
Friday, March 22, 2019 politics
![[Image: Ovie-Omo-Agege.jpg]](https://www.independent.ng/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Ovie-Omo-Agege.jpg)
The last may not have been heard about the crisis rocking Delta State All Progressives Congress (APC).
Leader of the party in the state, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, has said Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, representing Delta Central at the Senate, was not reelected in the 2019 general election as he was not the candidate of the party for the election.
This may not be unconnected with the Federal High Court’s judgment on Monday in Asaba which sacked the Jones Erue-led state APC executive from which faction Senator Ovie Omo-Agege and Chief Great Ogboru emerged as candidates of the APC.
Justice Toyin Adegoke, who delivered the judgment, restored the Chief Cyril Ogodo-led faction of the party as the authentic executive of the APC in Delta, declaring that any action taken by the sacked Erue-led faction was a nullity.
Emerhor, in a statement while reacting to the judgment, said he was the only candidate of the APC in Delta Central, adding that Omo-Agege was at no point a candidate of the party.
“Omo-Agege was at no time the candidate of the party nor was he at any time the senator-elect,” Emerhor said.
He added: “I emerged as the Delta Central senatorial candidate against Senator Ovie Omo-Agege who emerged from the Prophet Jones Erue Exco which the court has now declared illegal.
“Legally and physically, you can’t build anything on nothing. Omo-Agege built his candidature on nothing and it has given way and has collapsed.
“But this is beyond just me and Omo-Agege. We, the mainstream, also had a governorship candidate, Prof Pat Utomi, three senatorial candidates, 10 House of Representatives and 29 House of Assembly candidates! This court ruling is for all of them! If, for anything, it will be on record that they were the authentic candidates not anyone else.”
The APC chieftain stated that the mainstream Delta APC, which he leads, produced the Ogodo-led executive and accommodated over 70 percent of leaders and members of the party, alongside over five governorship aspirants in the state.
Emerhor noted that there was no other APC leadership other than the one the court has declared.
“The Ogodo-executive produced by the mainstream has always been the authentic executive. We only had a period when an illegal executive was foisted on the party. What the court did on its Monday ruling was just to restore the legal executive to its proper position.
“This case is testing the rule of law and party due process. APC won a number of positions during the general elections.
“Recall that the Asaba High Court on October 17, 2018, restrained the APC national not to submit any candidates list to INEC, and INEC not to accept any candidates list from the APC before the determination of the case.
“Any list APC went ahead to submit and INEC accepted respectively was in contempt of court order.
“So, legally and in reality, Omo-Agege was at no time the candidate nor was he at any time the senator-elect. Same for the other positions where APC won in Delta State.
“Not until the court ruling on Monday when the court authenticated me and others from the Ogodo executive primaries can anyone legally claim to be the senator-elect or any other position in Delta APC,” he added.
Friday, March 22, 2019 politics
The last may not have been heard about the crisis rocking Delta State All Progressives Congress (APC).
Leader of the party in the state, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, has said Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, representing Delta Central at the Senate, was not reelected in the 2019 general election as he was not the candidate of the party for the election.
This may not be unconnected with the Federal High Court’s judgment on Monday in Asaba which sacked the Jones Erue-led state APC executive from which faction Senator Ovie Omo-Agege and Chief Great Ogboru emerged as candidates of the APC.
Justice Toyin Adegoke, who delivered the judgment, restored the Chief Cyril Ogodo-led faction of the party as the authentic executive of the APC in Delta, declaring that any action taken by the sacked Erue-led faction was a nullity.
Emerhor, in a statement while reacting to the judgment, said he was the only candidate of the APC in Delta Central, adding that Omo-Agege was at no point a candidate of the party.
“Omo-Agege was at no time the candidate of the party nor was he at any time the senator-elect,” Emerhor said.
He added: “I emerged as the Delta Central senatorial candidate against Senator Ovie Omo-Agege who emerged from the Prophet Jones Erue Exco which the court has now declared illegal.
“Legally and physically, you can’t build anything on nothing. Omo-Agege built his candidature on nothing and it has given way and has collapsed.
“But this is beyond just me and Omo-Agege. We, the mainstream, also had a governorship candidate, Prof Pat Utomi, three senatorial candidates, 10 House of Representatives and 29 House of Assembly candidates! This court ruling is for all of them! If, for anything, it will be on record that they were the authentic candidates not anyone else.”
The APC chieftain stated that the mainstream Delta APC, which he leads, produced the Ogodo-led executive and accommodated over 70 percent of leaders and members of the party, alongside over five governorship aspirants in the state.
Emerhor noted that there was no other APC leadership other than the one the court has declared.
“The Ogodo-executive produced by the mainstream has always been the authentic executive. We only had a period when an illegal executive was foisted on the party. What the court did on its Monday ruling was just to restore the legal executive to its proper position.
“This case is testing the rule of law and party due process. APC won a number of positions during the general elections.
“Recall that the Asaba High Court on October 17, 2018, restrained the APC national not to submit any candidates list to INEC, and INEC not to accept any candidates list from the APC before the determination of the case.
“Any list APC went ahead to submit and INEC accepted respectively was in contempt of court order.
“So, legally and in reality, Omo-Agege was at no time the candidate nor was he at any time the senator-elect. Same for the other positions where APC won in Delta State.
“Not until the court ruling on Monday when the court authenticated me and others from the Ogodo executive primaries can anyone legally claim to be the senator-elect or any other position in Delta APC,” he added.