INEC lists Soludo APGA candidate for Anambra governorship election

 

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has listed Prof Chukwuma Soludo as the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the November 6, 2021, governorship election in Anambra State.

INEC, however, said the final list of candidates that would contest the Anambra State governorship election would be published on October 7.

In a list released on Thursday, the commission replaced Michael Umeoji with Chukwuma Soludo as the governorship candidate of APGA.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is still excluded from the list of cleared candidates for the poll.

INEC National Commissioner and chairman (Information and Voter Education Committee), Festus Okoye, made this known in a statement in Abuja.

He said, “The commission met today (Thursday August 19 202) and deliberated on a number of issues, including the nomination of candidates for the Anambra Governorship election holding on November 6 2021.

“The timetable and schedule of activities approved by the commission on January 18 2021 provides for the withdrawal/substitution of candidates in line with Sec. 35 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).

“Accordingly, by the deadline of July 30 2021 fixed by the commission, seven (7) governorship and eleven (11) deputy governorship candidates were substituted by eleven (11) out of the eighteen (18) political parties.

READ: INEC drops Soludo, Ozigbo for Anambra governorship race

“Similarly, the commission was served with the judgment of the Court of Appeal (Kano Division) which set aside the judgment of the High Court of Jigawa State on the leadership of APGA and the nomination of its candidates for the Anambra Governorship election.

“The list of substitute candidates is attached to this Press Release. It has also been published on the commission’s website.

“However, the final list of candidates will be published on October 7 2021 as provided in the timetable and schedule of activities for the election.”

Meanwhile, APGA has commended INEC for publishing the names of Chukwuma Soludo and Onyekachikwu Ibezim as the governorship and deputy governorship candidates of the party, respectively, for the election.

The party also said INEC almost destroyed the nation’s democracy with the initial exclusion of Soludo from the list of candidates in the forthcoming poll.

INEC had earlier replaced Soludo with Umeoji as the governorship candidate of APGA, following a Jigawa High Court order to that effect.