By Kelechi Esogwa-Amadi
Though still relishing their party’s recent victory at the Appeal Court which reinstated all their candidates for the 2023 general elections, supporters of Tonye Cole have sounded it loud and clear that nothing would stop them from repositioning their principal as the top favourite to win next year’s governorship election in Rivers State.
Bemoaning the setback the APC and their candidates have suffered since Cole emerged as governorship candidate, with many aggrieved members leaving the party and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) compounding the woes by waging legal battles against them, the supporters vowed to recover every electoral ground they lost during that period now that their legal nightmares are over with the court reinstating their candidates.
“It’s a good thing that the court has brought our candidates back, especially our governorship candidate Tonye Cole. He needs to be on the ballot so that we can take power from these people (PDP).
“You can see how the state is, hunger everywhere, no jobs apart from flyover labourer jobs and it’s only for their people. But we need someone who will create jobs for Rivers youths and it’s only Tonye Cole that can do that as an international business man. So we’re going to work for him with every energy that we have, to make sure that he wins, not minding the drawback he suffered due to those court cases from PDP,” a member of
Team Tonye Cole told journalists on Tuesday in Port Harcourt.
On how they intend to actualise Cole’s victory at the polls next year with the likes of PDP, Accord and a few other parties contesting, he said: “Yes, we know it’s not going to be an easy battle because the ruling party, PDP, is there. Other parties like Accord, SDP, ADP are also there and some of them have quality candidates.
“But people should understand that this coming election is not going to be about party. The era of voting for party and vote buying is gone. People are now voting for individuals – anybody they believe that will change their lives, they will vote for the person. Nigerians are now wiser. We have seen it happen in Anambra; it happened in Osun and I assure you it will happen in Rivers State in 2023.”
Another member of the support group revealed that they have mapped out strategies for promoting Tonye Cole to win more supporters for him.
“Though we will not expose all our strategies now but at least ward to ward campaign is one of them. We’re already doing that without making much noise. But the time for noise will come soon, once we tidy up our plans. That is when you will start hearing our jingles on radio and TV.
“There are other plans on ground but we will wait till January because this year has already ended. By the time we do half of what PDP has done, we will be ahead of them. It’s not how far but how well. Rivers people are already tired of them,” the Cole supporter said.
The Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt had set aside the Federal High Court (FHC) judgement nullifying the primaries that produced all the Candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Rivers State in next year’s General Elections.
Aggrieved members of the APC loyal to a former Guber aspirant in the party, Magnus Abe had challenged their exclusion from the Congresses of the Party.
The plaintiffs: George Orlu, Henry Wali & 3 Ors approached the FHC asking the Court to nullify the delegate congresses viz-a-viz all the primaries of the APC therein with regards to State Houses of Assembly elections, House of Representatives, Senate and Governorship election for the 2023 general elections slated for the 25th of February and the 11th day of March, 2023.
The brief facts of the case are that the Plaintiffs (George Orlu & 4 Ors), who claimed to be members of the APC in Rivers State, challenged the delegate elections of the 1st Defendant (APC) on the ground that despite paying for the nomination forms, they were not issued any forms for the elections and therefore prayed the court to set aside the DELEGATE elections of the APC conducted on the 18th and 19th of May, 2022.
On October 25, Justice Emmanuel Adema Obile of the FHC in Port Harcourt nullified all primary elections conducted by the Party in Rivers State over the unlawful exclusion of some party members as delegates to the primaries.
The APC is presenting aspirants in the following positions:- Governor, Deputy Governor, 3 Senatorial seats, 13 House of Representatives seats and 32 State House of Assembly seats.
Dissatisfied with the rulings of the trial Court, the aggrieved Parties, in Suit Nos: CA/PH/505/2022 (Nwankwo Ndubuisi Ozojie & 47 Ors v. George Orlu & 7 Ors) and CA/PH/521/2022 (INEC v. George Orlu & 6 Ors) approached the appelate Court.
In a unanimous decision, the three-man panel of the Appeal Court, led by Justice Muhammed Lawal Shuaibu JCA, upheld the submissions of the appellants and restored all APC Candidates back on the ballot.
