Abuja (Sundiata Post) – Some serving governors of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), yesterday picked tickets of their party to run for a second term. Among those who were given the tickets by party members included Nyesom Wike (Rivers); Ifeanyi Okowa (Delta); Darius Ishiaku (Taraba); Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu)and Ben Ayade of Cross Rivers State respectively.
Wike was nominated at the party’s state congress in Port Harcourt yesterday. He was unanimously chosen as the sole candidate of the party. Chief Returning Officer for the Rivers State PDP Governorship Primaries, Mr Chuma Chinye, announced that the governor polled 3,345 delegate votes from the 23 Local Government Areas of the state.
The voting process was kick-started by National PDP Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, who was a statutory delegate from Andoni Local Government Area.
Accepting the nomination Wike declared: “We are prepared for the election in 2019. Let nobody make a mistake that what happened in Osun and Ekiti States will happen in Rivers State. “We are ready to follow them to any level that they want.”
In Delta, Chairman of the PDP gubernatorial primary elections in Delta State, Mrs Uzo Nwandu, declared Okowa winner of the primaries held yesterday in Asaba, stating that of the 3, 278 accredited delegates from different local government areas of the state, 26 invalid votes were counted, while 3, 252 votes went to Okowa.
Okowa was the only member of the PDP who picked the gubernatorial form and was successfully screened in Port Harcourt, Rivers State to participate in the primary election.
Okowa said: “During the 2015 elections you will recall that promises were made and we have continued to do the best that we can despite the very challenging times to ensure that we met with the promises but one good thing that Deltans have done is that they have continued to pray for us and partner with us in governance and I must say that I am very grateful to all Deltans particularly our leaders, our youths and our women.”
Also in Enugu, Ugwuanyi was returned as sole candidate of the party after delegates voted for him during the PDP governorship primaries that took place at Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu.
The governor was returned with about 2, 895 votes to emerge the winner and candidate of the party. Ugwuanyi said: “My greatest happiness is the existing peace in the state which is responsible for the massive development the people are witnessing in the state.
