The Chairman of all local government chairman in the All Progressive Congress, (APC), in Delta state, and also the Senior Special Assistant to the national Chairman of the APC on local government affairs, Norbert Sochukwudinma has dismissed Senator Ned Nwoko’s allegations of manipulation in the Delta North APC primary, insisting the outcome reflected the political reality within the party structure.

Recall that Senator Nwoko had earlier spoken with ARISE NEWS, where he alleged manipulations in the results of the APC primaries in Delta North.

As a right of reply, the APC member, Sochukwudinma, in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Wednesday, described Nwoko’s claims as “a blatant lie,” arguing that the senator failed to engage party leaders and grassroots structures across the nine local governments before the primaries.

“I want to start by saying that was a blatant lie. He laid misleading information to Nigerians that those of us referred to as legacy party members have been marginalized or sidelined.

“When you fail to plan, you’ve already planned to fail. Senator Ned Nwoko stayed away completely from the party. I don’t know where he would have manufactured support or victory. Someone who desires to run for an election never consulted any of the local government party chairmen—nine of us—never consulted the leaders across the nine local governments,” he said.

Sochukwudinma argued that the APC primary was decided strictly by registered party members, not public crowds or political popularity, stressing that only accredited APC delegates participated in the process.

“Only card-carrying members of the APC are eligible voters in the primary. Politics and party politics is not showbiz. You don’t demonstrate by moving and people following you; those who are following you don’t even have party cards, they can’t even vote,” he explained.

He also dismissed circulating typed results sheets as fabricated, insisting the authentic results were handwritten and submitted through certified ward and local government returning officers across the 98 wards in Delta North.

“I saw some results that they circulated on the media—results that were typewritten. Our results are handwritten. They are not typed. They allotted votes to females and to males; that’s not how it is done. So that one is fabricated,” he insisted.

Speaking on Senator Nwoko’s performance, Sochukwudinma noted that his support base within the party was limited, attributing this to what he described as a lack of engagement with APC structures across wards and local government levels.

“I was even surprised that he could get up to 2,000 plus. You know why? The structure of the party. If Senator Ned Nwoko failed, it is because he is indifferent, nonchalant, and lackadaisical. He doesn’t care or have regard for the party. There’s no independent candidacy today in Nigeria. So for you to contest for any election, you need a platform,” he said.

Reiterating his stance, Sochukwudinma insisted that the primary results reflected genuine party strength on the ground, arguing that Senator Ned Nwoko lacked sufficient support within APC structures across all levels.

“There wasn’t any manipulation. If you listen to my analysis, Senator Ned Nwoko had almost nobody in the party supporting him because he didn’t care about the party. He showed disregard to the party from ward to local government to senatorial levels,” he maintained.

He added that the difference in political strength between Senator Okowa and Senator Nwoko was evident in party loyalty and grassroots mobilisation, noting that the former governor had built a strong network of relationships and development impact across Delta North.

“In the Nigerian context, we know what ‘seeing’ means. Party structure! Consultation! That is the tradition. The party where he claimed to belong: You disregard party structure, you disregard ward chairmen, local government chairmen, the leaders of the party—that same party that you desire to run an election in. And the other person who was a former governor, who was even in the Senate before you and performed, performed as a governor, has built human capital development, built men and consulted. How do you expect him not to have great turnout?”, he quizzed.

Dismissing claims that Senator Nwoko was shut out of the party establishment, Sochukwudinma said APC primaries are handled by the National Working Committee and depend on engagement, lobbying, and party-wide interaction, not exclusion or state influence.

“I heard when he accused the governor falsely when he said the governor appointed the committee. That’s a lie. The National Working Committee of the party appoints those who go to conduct elections, not the governor.”

Attributing post-primary tensions to lack of sportsmanship, he cited his own experience of stepping aside during a zoned leadership arrangement, maintaining that APC decisions are generally reached through consensus and internal democratic processes rather than disputes.

“It’s a lack of sportsmanship. For instance, I had desired to represent or lead my party at the state level. I consulted. But when the time came, the leaders met and felt it should be zoned to the Delta South part of our state, and I’m from Delta North. Automatically, I was out of it.

“During our Congresses, we built consensus, and there was no fight, there was no quarrel. Our national convention that we held, it was consensus. Did you hear that two persons contested for any election? APC is a well-organized party with strong internal party democracy. APC is a well-organized party with strong internal party democracy,” he stressed.

Refuting claims of top-down interference, Sochukwudinma insisted that no external pressure influenced the primaries.

“No. There were no pressure from above,” he stated.

He, however alleged that Senator Nwoko instead sought preferential treatment through an “automatic ticket” demand, while maintaining that the primaries were free, fair, and decisively won by Senator Ifeanyi Okowa under established party structures.

“Where we would have even experienced pressure would have been from Senator Ned Nwoko, who believed in an ‘automatic ticket.’ He was the one who wanted to manipulate, who wanted to bring that pressure so that the people of Delta North would not make their choice.

“We did it. Free, fair, credible election, and Senator Ifeanyi Okowa defeated him. If they decide to conduct that election 100 times, the same setting, the same structure, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa will beat Senator Ned,” he maintained. (Arise News)

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