In Bayelsa, a federal high court has declared Ikechukwu Ukaegbu as the official candidate for the Labour Party (LP) in the upcoming off-cycle governor’s election in Imo state, scheduled for November 11.
Emma Akko, the presiding judge, confirmed Ukaegbu, also known as Ikenga, as the rightful candidate on Friday.
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Ukaegbu had won the gubernatorial ticket in the primaries organized by Lamidi Apapa’s electoral panel in the state on April 16.
Judge Akko also ruled that the primaries conducted by the Julius Abure-led faction of the LP in Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi states were illegal and invalid.
He noted these primaries took place while Abure was under a court order not to claim himself as the party national chairman.
The court instructed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to promptly list the names of candidates who were elected through “valid primaries” conducted in Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi states.
Nze Akujobi, Imo state chairman of the LP, applauded the court’s judgment. He called it an accurate representation of the party’s will and congratulated Ukaegbu on his candidacy.
Akujobi also expressed his belief in Ukaegbu’s capability and the party’s potential for victory in the upcoming governor’s election.