…Rejects APC Primary, Demands Justice
By Jude Atupulazi
Valentine Ozigbo, one of the Guber Aspirants on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has described the primary election of the party which threw up Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu as a charade that cannot stand, while asserting that the future of Anambra State cannot be bought.
In a message released on Tuesday, April 8, Mr Ozigbo said that he had filed a formal petition before the APC Gubernatorial Primary Appeals Committee, to contest the process that produced Mr Nicholas Ukachukwu as the party’s standard bearer which he described as riddled with fraud, irregularities, and violations of democratic norms.
‘Yesterday, I formally submitted a petition to the Appeals Committee of our great party. That exercise, by all observable standards, was a charade – a well-orchestrated heist designed to deliver a predetermined outcome,’ Ozigbo wrote.
Citing widespread manipulations, voter exclusion, and non-transparency in vote counting, Ozigbo asserted that the process violated not only internal party rules but also the broader expectations of fairness and accountability in a democratic system.
Ozigbo, who joined the APC in February after a stint in the Labour Party and a formidable 2021 Governorship run under the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, positioned his protest as a defence of democratic values, not a personal grievance.
‘This is not just about me. It is about the soul of our democracy. About the values we claim to represent. About the future we owe our children,’ he wrote, adding, ‘the sham of April 5 is a fraud against me, but more critically, a theft against Ndi Anambra.’
He however said he was remaining with the APC to continue the fight from inside the party.
‘I will not be distracted. I will not run to the Senate, nor will I pivot to another political opportunity for the sake of ambition. I will stand firm, here, in the APC, and I will fight this good fight to its just end,’ he declared.
Rejecting political expediency, Ozigbo emphasised that his foray into politics had always been about service, not power.
‘I am not a transactional politician. I seek power to make a difference, to restore dignity, create jobs, secure lives, and light a path for the next generation.’
Addressing the national leadership of the APC directly, Ozigbo urged the party to rectify what he described as a grave error, defining the primary election as a defining moment, not just for Anambra, but for the credibility of the party and the soul of the nation.
‘The party still has a chance to right this wrong and present a candidate who can truly win and govern,’ he said.
