From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt
Frontline governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Senator Magnus Abe, has said he boycotted the party’s governorship primaries because he believes that due processes were not followed.
Senator Abe said even though he will not accept the outcome of the APC governorship primaries in the state, he would definitely be on the ballot in the forthcoming governorship election.
The former lawmaker spoke while addressing journalists at Freedom House, the headquarters of his campaign organization in Port Harcourt, yesterday.
He said: “I have received a lot of massages saying that I have withdrawn from the governorship race of the All Progressives Congress. That is not true. I have not withdrawn and I will not withdraw.
“What is being set up today is a charade. Everybody knows that in a delegate election, if you are not included in how the delegates are chosen, if the process of choosing the delegates is not inclusive, is not transparent and is not fair.
“The outcome of what the delegates will do cannot be any difference from the process that produce them.
“Like I stated at the beginning of this whole thing when I declared, I said I will not accept the outcome of any process that is not just, fair, equitable and that is not inclusive.
“The indirect primaries being conducted today by the former Minister of Transportation and his cronies in the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State, clearly does not meet that standard.
“And for that reason I decided not to participate, not to withdraw out of respect for the party, I want to say clearly that I will not accept the outcome, neither will I be bound by it.
“To Rivers people, let me say this clearly, there will be an election to elect a governor for the people of Rivers State in March next year, as in other parts of this country. And it will be the responsibility of Rivers people to choose who that governor will be, that will superintend the affairs and activities of all of us.
“What I will say to Rivers people is that, I Senator Magnus Ngei Abe, will be on that ballot and Rivers people will have the opportunity to choose who shall lead our dear state moving forward.”
He stated that no individual, no matter how influential or connected, would individually decide for Rivers people.
“No one individual, however powerful, however well connected, however wealthy, will decide for all of us. You will have that opportunity to decide who our next governor will be and I, Magnus Abe will be on the ballot.”
