Six House of Representatives aspirants on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Ibadan Northwest/Southwest federal constituency have petitioned the APC Election Appeal Committee over alleged mutilated delegates’ list, non-conduct of the primary election in the federal constituency and purported declaration of one of the aspirants as winner of the primary that never took place.

The six petitioners, among the eight aspirants, are a former member of the House of Representatives, Mrs. Folake Olunloyo-Oshinowo, as well as Otunba Rotimi Ajanaku, Biodun Ikumoguniyi, Samuel Ajadi, Temitope Oyewale and Fasola Mutahir. They have requested for a new date for the conduct of the primary in the federal constituency.

The seventh aspirant, Kehinde Subair, a former majority leader of Oyo State House of Assembly, did not sign the petition. The petitioners alleged that a former Reps member, Saheed Akinade-Fijabi, was declared winner even when no primary election took place.

The petition, which was addressed to the Chairman of the Appeal Committee, Oyo State Primary Elections of APC, through the Secretary of the Oyo State Election Appeal Panel Committee, showed the collective grievances of the aspirants about the primary election that was supposed to have taken place last Friday at Lafia Hotel, Apata, Ibadan, the agreed venue between  the primary election committee chairman, the APC chairman in the state and the party’s chairmen in the two local governments in the constituency.

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The petitioners said: “The aspirants approached the Electoral Committee at Lafia Hotel and asked for the delegates’ list, which was produced, but happened to have been partly typed, handwritten and mutilated. It was also not in the format that the party representative from Abuja told us it would be at a meeting held at Premier Hotel on Friday morning.

“We were told – all eight aspirants, on Friday morning that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) official would come with a delegates’ list that would have an INEC stamp on it. The list was to be cross-checked with the list that would be given to the party chairman before the election would take place.

“We asked to be shown the list on Friday at a meeting held at Premier Hotel. But the INEC representative and the state party chairman denied the request. On getting to Lafia Hotel, venue for the primary, the eight aspirants held a meeting and came to a unanimous decision not to go ahead with the primary if the delegates’ list has been tampered with and not as the party representative from Abuja advised it will be.

“When we got to the hall to meet the Electoral Committee, we asked for the list and what we got were mutilated sheets with cancelled names and handwritten names on it. We were told the list was given to the committee by the two local government party chairmen. The INEC stamp was not on the list presented. While waiting for a new date to be fixed for the election, to our greatest surprise, we found out in the electronic media that one of the aspirants, Saheed Akinade Fijabi, has been declared the winner of a primary election that never took place.”

The petitioner urged the Appeal Committee to look into the matter and fix an appropriate date for the conduct of a proper primary election.