The Labour Party candidate in the Bayelsa State 2023 governorship election, Udengs Eradiri, has approached the election petitions tribunal seeking the disqualification of the incumbent and Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Senator Douye Diri, and his All Progressives Congress counterpart, Chief Timipre Sylva.
Eradiri, who rejected the result of the governorship election, made the demand on Wednesday.
He insisted that he was the only eligible candidate who scored the valid votes cast and deserved to be declared as the duly elected governor of the state.
Addressing stakeholders, ward and local government officials of the party at his campaign office in Yenagoa, Eradiri said he decided to explore the legal option after thoroughly assessing the outcome of the polls.
He said: “After the election, we said we were going to look at the issues.
“And I am here to officially inform the leadership of the party that we have gone to court, and we pray for the court to declare me winner.
“The reason is that the PDP and APC produced candidates that were not eligible to contest the elections, and I won the valid votes cast in the election, so I should be declared governor of Bayelsa.
“There are issues of eligibility of the two candidates, and that is my reason for going to the tribunal.
“Many people have lost hope in the judiciary, but that small thread we held onto is the basis for me to challenge the declaration.
“After studying the entire process, I have decided to ask the tribunal to declare me governor.
“With the spread of my 950 votes, you will see that in seven out of the eight local governments, I got the constitutional requirements, so if you invalidate the PDP and APC votes, I should be declared winner.”
Eradiri said he decided to explore the court options in the interest of the suffering people of Bayelsa State, adding that he would continue to raise issues affecting the people.
He said: “If the court decides they’ll look the other way, we will still challenge it because of that small thread of hope we still believe that there are people of integrity in the judiciary and that is what we are holding on to.”
On the crisis rocking the party in the state, he said there was no faction, adding that the labour party stakeholders and leadership had decided to appoint an acting chairman in accordance with the constitution.
Eradiri said the former chairman of the party in the state lacked the constitutional power to suspend him.
He said: “Some people decided to leave the party, they voluntarily left.
“The natural system of discipline in the party kicked him out, not me.
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“So there’s no faction.
“The position of the party is clear.
“If you participate in anti-party activity, it is expulsion.
“We have a constitution that dictates our modus operandi.
“I have demonstrated the principles to put the party together so I can’t at this time destroy it myself.”
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