Chairman, National Convention Planning Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has said none of the 12 aspirants gunning for the party’s 2019 presidential ticket has stepped down, contrary to speculations in some quarters.

Addressing Journalists Friday at the Adokiye Amasiemeka Stadium, Port Harcourt, Rivers State venue of the convention, Okowa, governor of Delta, state also assured that everything was on course for a hitch-free convention.

Okowa clarified, “There is a process for withdrawing from the race. We have12 aspirants for now and none of them has stepped down. “Accreditation of delegates is very sensitive, so, we are starting the accreditation process tomorrow (Saturday) at 7 am.

“We are expecting a very good convention. We are working very hard to deliver a process that is credible, free, fair and acceptable” Hotels in Port Harcourt jammed, VIP’s convoys unsettling traffic

Meanwhile, reservations in all major hotels in Port Harcourt and environs have sold out to the extent that many delegates are said to have berthed at neighbouring Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital, towards moving on at dawn.

Flag Presidential Hotels, Port Harcourt, Vanguard gathered, had been booked tight over two weeks back and has been beehive of various aspirants and their supporters since Wednesday.

The heavy presence of VIPs has also aggravated traffic in major motorways in Port Harcourt as various convoys move in different directions to and from the Port Harcourt International Airport to the heart of the capital city. Security build is, however, heavier in Ikwerre locality between Omagwa, the airport location and Igwuruta-Aili location of the stadium where it would all happen today and tomorrow.

•Sourced from Vanguard report

•Delta State Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa (left) and Governor of Ebonyi State, Engr. Dave Umahi , displaying the 2018 PDP Special National Convention Flag, at Wadata Plaza, Abuja.