By Simon Ebegbulem

BENIN—Ahead of Sunday’s planned screening of the four governorship aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Edo State, three of the aspirants have concluded plans to boycott the screening which they described as illegal.

A chieftain of the party, Mr Okharedia Ihimekpen, explained that screening of aspirants was normally done by the national leadership of the party and not the state.

Vanguard learned that the four aspirants, Matthew Iduoriyekemwen, Osaro Onaiwu, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and Chief Solomon Edebiri, had been directed to make available their documents before the 15-man committee set up by the leadership of the party last Sunday with a view to screening them.

But it was gathered that three of the aspirants described such move as illegal, saying that the duty to screen aspirants lies with the national leadership of the party and not party leaders in the state.

It was further learned that top leaders of the party who were backing some of the aspirants had directed them to stay away from the screening which, according to them, was a ploy to discredit some of the aspirants before the primaries.