The assertion that it’s not over until it’s over has said to be the order of the day in Ideato nation over the continued call to the appropriate authorities to discontinue the recognition of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for Ideato Federal Constituency, Mr. George Igbo as the candidate of the party over his alleged submission of false information on INEC registration forms and alleged report that he was an ex convict in the United States of America.
The situation which according to reports made available to newsmen by a group under the auspices of Concerned Ideato Nation Citizens of the Peoples Democratic Party (CINC- PDP), stated that the continued stay of Mr. George Igbo’s name as the candidate of the PDP as against the original outcome of the party’s primaries has made it a “Christmas come early” for the sitting APC House of Representative Member for Ideato Federal Constituency, Hon. Austin Chukwukere as his supporters celebrate the submission of Mr. George Igbo’s name by the PDP to the INEC as its candidate considering the facts on ground on his person”.
According to the group spokesman, Comr. Ikechukwu Nwachukwu Daniel, “trouble started for Mr. George Igbo who he alleged was an ex-convict when his name miraculously appeared at the INEC office as pasted at Ideato North and South Local Government offices after losing at the PDP primaries to one Mr. Anthony Abili who polled the highest number of votes casted and was declared the winner at the venue.
Comr. Nwachukwu revealed that the alleged ex-convict, Mr. George Igbo emerged a distant second place at the PDP Primaries conducted on the 5th of October 2019 at Urualla Civic Centre.
He further alleged that given his close relationship with a former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives who hails from Rivers State and happens to be a close ally of the National Chairman of the PDP, he was able to convince the party stalwarts to manipulate the outcome of the primaries and have his name submitted to the INEC in place of the original winner of the primaries, Mr. Anthony Abili.
Information made available by another of the group member who simply gave his name as Amuche revealed that the acclaimed winner of the primary election, Mr. Anthony Abili has approached an Abuja Federal High Court against Mr. George Igbo, PDP and INEC to reclaim his mandate which he maintained remain the greatest desire of the people of the constituency who are desirous of better representation at the lower chambers of the National Assembly.
Mr. Amuchie stated that trouble started for Mr. George Igbo when the INEC forms he submitted were made available in line with the INEC guidelines at the two LGA headquarters of the constituency as not only did it emerge that George Igbo who is 52years old and claimed to have a School Leaving Certificate presented a copy of an online NECO result sheet for an exam he purportedly sat for in June/July 2018.
Mr. Amuchie hinted further that preliminary information from contacts of the group revealed that indeed there is a Mr. George Igbo who was incarcerated and released from the US Federal Penitentiary in 1992 for bank fraud. The records he added showed that a black Nigerian inmate bearing the name George Igbo with inmate no. 12013-006 was born on 6th November 1966 and released on 08/10/1992.
Further investigations with the relevant authorities according to Mr Amuchie who hails from Arondizuogu in Ideato North Local Government confirmed that indeed, there was an inmate processed in Alaska USA with the same name as George Igbo.
