By Egufe Yafugborhi

Warri— TheRE is tension in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State ahead of the October 25 council elections in the state, as some leaders of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the locality have picked Mr. Henry Baro as the party’s chairmanship flag bearer.

However, the other aspirants have described the process that led to Baro’s emergence as skewered, adding that the day fixed for the primaries was next Saturday.

Present at the PDP primaries were the party’s state Treasurer, Chief Willie Ashubu; former Uvwie council Chairman and member of House of Representatives, Evelyn Oboro; Uvwie Transition Committee Chairman, Bright Edejewhro; Secretary to the council, Ms Ejumudo Elizabeth among other leaders from all the 10 Uvwie wards.

Uvwie PDP Chairman, Mr. Kelly Otuedo, who hosted the open balloting to decide the party’s chairmanship choice at his Ogbolokposo residence, argued that the idea was in response to Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s desire for Uvwie PDP leaders to reduce the tension in the locality by harmonising interests to streamline the number of PDP aspirants for Uvwie council chairmanship.

He said: “We have six aspirants gunning for the party’s ticket for the council chair. Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, at an earlier meeting with party leaders, had appealed for streamlining of the aspirants to reduce tension in the area.

“Today (yesterday) we convened this meeting to see how we can streamline and following a motion by Chief Mike Imiruae, it was decided that five leaders representing each ward chose one among the aspirants. The result was that Henry Baro is the popular choice.”

‘It’s kangaroo primaries’

Reacting, however, immediate past Uvwie Council chairman, Peter Abugewa, who spoke to Vanguard on behalf of five other aspirants, described the exercise as a kangaroo election that cannot be defended under any guise.

Agry Abugewa said: “In the first place, did PDP or Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, order elections to hold anywhere today (Wednesday)? The obvious answer is ‘no.’

“Saturday, this weekend, is the day officially fixed for primaries. So why would few interested parties, who met in the private residence of a member, come up to say they had chosen Baro above other five candidate.

“It is like shaving one’s head behind his back. The respected governor did say there was tension and called for harmonisation. But the provision was for normal primaries to be held if there was no consensus.”

According to Abugewa, those who held the preemptive primaries did so under tight security, adding “they handpicked their loyalist and stationed police in five patrol vans and army in another five vans.

“Even the member represen-ting Uvwie in the House of Assembly was not privy to the meeting. All other aspirants were not allowed in. Only their favoured Baro was allowed in.”