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By Madu Obi
The member representing Ogbaru Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Afam Victor Ogene, has been declared the authentic winner of the February 25 election for the constituency by the national and state assembly election tribunal sitting in Awka.
Ogene described the victory as a validation of the people's will and an undeniable grace of God.
The three- member tribunal affirmed the victory of the Labour Party candidate against the petition of the People's Democratic Party(PDP) candidate, Hon.Chukwuka Onyema.
According to the result of the election released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on April 15, 2023, after a supplementary election in the constituency, Ogene defeated the PDP candidate.
The results showed that the LP candidate scored 10,851 votes of the total votes cast, followed by the candidate of the PDP who polled 10,619 votes, while the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Hon. Arinze Awogu, came third with 10,155 votes.
Recall that the election in Ogbaru Federal Constituency was declared inconclusive by INEC after the February 25 presidential and national assembly elections.
A rerun election was later held in the constituency on April 15, and dissatisfied with the result, Onyema, who had been in the national assembly for three tenures, approached the tribunal to challenge Ogene's victory.
Speaking after the judgment, elated Ogene expressed gratitude to God for the victory and grace to represent his constituents at the House of Representatives.
Ogene said: "I want to specially appreciate God for His faithfulness in ensuring that the light which He lit for the people would never be extinguished by the shenanigans of those who seek to exalt themselves against His will and His divine agenda for ndi Ogbahu.
"I also want to sincerely appreciate the entire Ogbaru people, irrespective of political or social divides, for their steadfastness in working and praying for the good of Ogbaru.
"We are remarkably a peaceful people, and should not allow politics or personal interest of the political class or politically exposed people to divide or destroy us."
"Ogbaru Federal Constituency is not a private estate of anyone or group of individuals.
Leadership positions are entrusted to individuals at a time, to work for and protect the interest of the people. It should never be a do or die affair, because it is only God that determines who should lead the people at any given time.
"I had won election in the past. And I had also lost election in 2015 as an incumbent representative. But I just moved on and waited for God's own time.
I didn't take my opponent to the court then because I considered that doing so would hurt the interest of Ogbaru as tribunal distractions would impact adversely on the quality of representation that the people deserve.
"It is in this light that I pay glowing tribute to my brother and All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA candidate in the election, Comrade Arinze Awogu, for electing to align with the people's will, by refusing to go to the Tribunal."
"Ogbaru deserves the best and should demand for the best, but such legitimate aspiration would be jeopardized, should we continue to allow politics of acrimony to erode our oneness and the political space."
"I congratulate the good people of Ogbaru, because with this vital victory, we shall now concentrate fully in the service of the people, in the true sense of representative democracy.
"I also say kudos to the judiciary, whose judgement remarkably aligns with the will of the Ogbaru electorate."
He said the victory would further energize him to continue to provide quality representation for the people.
He also extended hands of fellowship to the PDP candidate and urged him to avoid the temptation of further judicial brickbats.
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