By Ozioruva Aliu

BENIN CITY – A fresh twist into the Edo State Labour Party (LP) governorship primary election emerged on Sunday as a United Kingdom based legal practitioner, Hilton Idahosa emerged as the second candidate in the Lamidi Apapa led faction of the party.

  Apapa had in a letter addressed to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) which surfaced on Friday said Mr. Anderson Uwadiae Asemote was its candidate and Monday Ojore Mawah as deputy governorship candidate.

   This is as the Julius Abure led faction in a primary election held at its primary held at the Bishop Kelly Pastoral Centre produced former National President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Olumide Akpata as its candidate.

  Idahosa was said to have emerged during a parallel primary of the Apapa-led faction held on Saturday, February 24, 2024, with 917 votes.

  Idahosa, the newest candidate described the purported letter from Apapa as fake and explained that the primary election which was earlier slated for Thursday, February 21, 2024, was shifted to Saturday February 24, to allow for exigencies.

   According to him, there was no primary election conducted on Thursday February 22, as purported in the said letter from Apapa to INEC. 

     Idahosa stressed that the election in which he emerged as a candidate was conducted by the Labour Party state officials at the factional secretariat of the party on First East Circular Road, Benin City and that the said letter was the handiwork of mischief makers who were bent on causing disaffection within the ranks of the party.

   Idahosa further noted that he had the “backings of the state leaders and the party members, as well as that of Apapa and his team” disclosing that the true position would be made known in the coming days as his team was in dialogue with both the Apapa team and leaders of the party in the state.