The African Democratic Congress (ADC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Labour Party (LP) will not participate in the February 21 by-election in Rivers state, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has declared.
The election will be held in Ahoada east constituency 2 and Khana constituency 2.
Both seats were declared vacant in the Rivers State House of Assembly following the resignation of Edison Ehie, who was appointed as Chief of Staff by Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State, and the passing of Dinebari Loolo in September 2023.
Speaking on Friday in Port-Harcourt, Gabriel Yomere, INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Rivers State, said candidates of seven political parties had been cleared to contest the polls.
He listed the participating parties as AA, APC, APN, BP, NNPP, YPP and ZLP.
Said he: “These are the parties that will participate in the elections”.
Yomere assured residents of a free, fair, and credible election, explaining that the PDP, LP, and ADC were excluded for failing to meet the stipulated requirements.
Yomere said the PDP did not conduct primaries, while the LP cited ongoing litigation.
He said although, the ADC conducted primaries, it failed to upload the results to the INEC headquarters portal within the prescribed period, as required by law.
Said Yomere: “That’s why they were excluded. Nobody is interested in excluding them”.
Yomere said all Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines for the poll had been configured and non-sensitive materials distributed, noting that only INEC staff, and not ad-hoc personnel, would conduct the exercise.
