Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State was yesterday elected as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the February 2019 governorship election in the state.
The Governor was elected by by the party delegates at the venue of the primaries, main bowl of the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu. The delegates for the election unanimously voted for His Excellency who had no opponent for the election. He got 2,782 valid votes out of the 2,859 total votes by the delegates
His election is very peculiar as it is the first time ever in the history of the state an aspirant to the office of the Governor is contesting in the party primaries unopposed or as a sole candidate.
The exercise, which started with accreditation of delegates at the Michael Okpara Square, Enugu, commenced at about 3pm, after 2,864 accredited delegates were conveyed to Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, the voting venue of the primary election.
The election was declared open by the chairman of the 5-man State Electoral Committee from National Secretariat of the Party, Senator Ambuno Zik. The electoral committee Chairman stated that the exercise will be conducted in accordance with the electoral act and party’s guidelines and constitution.
Senator Zik, who noted that Gov. Ugwuanyi was the sole aspirant for the governorship primary election, added that delegates will have to vote accordingly, stressing: “Due process must be followed”.
He commended Gov. Ugwuanyi for entrenching peace and good governance in Enugu State, and also appreciated the state leadership of the the party, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials that was there to monitor the process, security agencies and party’s stakeholders for their contributions to the success of the exercise.
Introducing the sole governorship aspirant of the party to the delegates, the Deputy President of the Senate, Prof. Ike Ekweremadu, applauded Gov. Ugwuanyi for holding the forte for the party and state, disclosing that this was the first time in the past 21 years of his active participation in politics, that the PDP would be having a sole aspirant as well as a non-contentious governorship primary election.
According to him, “today we have not only a Governor who has performed very well, he has also entrenched peace in Enugu State”.
Gov. Ugwuanyi while thanking the delegates for the overwhelming support and the unanimous mandate given to him, expressed gratitude to God for the peace in Enugu State which has brought development and good governance.
The governor also appreciated the leadership of the Party at the National, State, Local Government and Ward levels for their support and solidarity.
He equally commended INEC, security agencies, the media and the good people of the state for the successful primaries, assuring them “it will end in praises in Jesus name.”
