AA Candidate Disowns Petition Seeking to Nullify Deputy Speaker, Kalu’s Mandate

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia

Barely four days after the conclusion of proceedings on the petitions filed against the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, the candidate of the Action Alliance(AA) has dramatically disowned the petition linked to him.

The Action Alliance and the Labour Party (LP) along with their candidates in the February 25, 2023 poll for Bende federal constituency, filed petitions at the National and State House of Assembly Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia.

The tribunal had on Monday August 14, 2023 reserved judgement on the matter following the adoption of their final written addresses by the petitioners, urging the tribunal to nullify Kalu’s mandate.

The petition filed by AA was on the ground that the party logo and the name of its candidate were excluded by INEC on the ballot papers and the forms in which votes scored by candidates were recorded.

But in a surprise move, the AA candidate, Ifeanyi Chukwuka Igbokwe has gone on radio to deny knowledge of the petition marked EPT/ AB/REP/17/2023, in which he was listed as the first petitioner and his party the second petitioner.

In the radio programme, monitored in Umuahia, Igbokwe expressed shock that his name appeared in the petition seeking to upturn Kalu’s mandate and consequently crash his position as deputy speaker.

He said: “I was at home drinking my tea and watching the news until someone called me to inform me that I had a case in court against the Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon Benjamin Kalu.

“So, I was surprised that people were calling me from my own place and constituency telling me about the court case. I (had already) accepted the results of the elections, accepted defeat, and said to God “be the glory.”

The AA House of Representatives candidate said that he had already filed a motion on notice for withdrawal before the tribunal, insisting that someone had used his name to file the petition against Kalu without his consent.

According to Igbokwe, he never filed or authorised any legal action against Kalu, adding that it is a case of impersonation of his name to bring down the deputy speaker.

He further expressed dismay “that someone is even representing me. This is my poster and this is my voter’s card, this is my party card so how come somebody is representing me and I didn’t know anything about it?

“Even my lawyer is surprised also. When we heard it, we were like ah! ah! See, Rt. Hon. Ben that we are all rejoicing for his new position and I am telling people that he is my brother from Bende. So why will I start fighting my own brother?”

Igbokwe, whose voice betrayed bewilderment and anger, said he came on air because “I want to clear my name first. I want to tell the people of Abia State and Bende that I accept defeat.

“And I want to tell deputy speaker that I am not fighting him. I don’t know the person impersonating me but I will fish him out and come back to inform you people,” he assured.

Igbokwe said he has written to the police and the Department of State Services (DSS) asking the security agencies to fish out the impersonators, including the lawyers that purportedly represent him at the tribunal.

He reasoned that whoever had hired the lawyers had equally hired the impersonators hence he was eager for the security agencies to unmask the people behind the mask.