From Tony John, Port Harcourt
Senator Magnus Abe was on Saturday elected as the candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) for the 2023 governorship election in Rivers State.
The primary, which was conducted in Port Harcourt, Rivers State and supervised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) senior officer, Emmanuel Isong and other representatives from the Department of State Security Service (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force was described as the fairest primaries ever held in the state.
Chairman of SDP substitution electoral committee Muhammed Ibrahim, who declared Magnus Abe as the winner of the election, having pulled 30 votes, advised members of the party to go out and get their permanent voters card (PVC).
“Today, we have elected a credible candidate for the governorship election in Rivers State. Let me thank all of you for conducting yourselves peacefully and for electing a very popular candidate in the person of distinguished Senator Magnus Abe, as the governorship candidate of the party for Rivers state.
“For those of you who are yet to register and collect your PVCs, please ensure that you do so before the expiration of the deadline as slated by INEC. I am very confident that with a quality candidate like Senator Magnus Abe, SDP will become the ruling party in Rivers state come 2023.”
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In his solidarity message, the former member of the House of Representatives and a leader of the Rivers State chapter of SDP, Chidi Wihioka, thanked INEC for its effort in ensuring that elections in Nigeria were free, fair and credible.
He noted that with what transpired in the Osun State governorship election recently, Nigerians could cast their votes and be confident that such vote would count.
“I was INEC Electoral Commissioner some years ago. I can tell you that INEC is doing good work right now.
“INEC has now given Nigerians a high hope that their votes will count going forward. Thuggery during elections will now become a thing of the past. With Magnus Abe as the governorship candidate of our great party, SDP, there is no doubt that we will have a nice outing in 2023.”
On his part, the former Commissioner of Power in the administration of former Governor Chibuike Amaechi and now a member of the federal character commission, Augustine Wokocha, commended the delegates at the election and promised that the Rivers people would witness a new era in the government of Magnus Abe.
“Abe is a model. SDP will now become a state party. With Abe as a governor in 2023, Rivers State will be free from despots. As you can see, the process was very transparent and free. Abe has a solid structure from the state to local government and even the ward levels. He is a man that is loved by the people.”
The Rivers State chairman of SDP, Solsuema Osaro, expressed confidence that the candidature of Abe would make SDP a party to beat in the state in 2023. “I am very confident that with Abe as our candidate, Rivers state belongs to SDP.”