By: Ade Phillips

Ondo state APC governorship aspirant Olusola Oke has contested the validity of the party’s recent primary, asserting that it was legally nullified due to the involvement of APC national chairman Abdullahi Ganduje, who was under a court restraint during the election.

Oke, who secured the third position with 14,453 votes, highlighted discrepancies in the conduct of the primary, citing non-compliance with legal and party constitutional provisions.

Among the issues raised were the lack of a validated membership register and the failure to deploy electoral personnel to designated ward and local government venues as outlined in the party’s guidelines.

According to his petition, “Election not conducted, yet results generated and allocated by Returning officers camped in Hotel in Akure. The results declared were not the product of any election.

“That the APC primary election in Ondo State purportedly conducted between 20th and 22 of April 2024 be set aside for being a nullity, flawed, having been conducted against the order of Court, lis pendens and without compliance with relevant provisions of laws and APC Constitution and Guidelines,

“Since no valid declaration can be based on an invalid primary election, the committee is urged to recommend or direct a conduct of fresh primary to be conducted in line with applicable laws and guidelines.”