Nigeria 2015 Polls: PDP Lays Fresh Ambush Against General Elections

There are indications that the national leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party might have perfected a fresh strategy aimed at stalling the March 28 presidential election.

Investigations gathered in Abuja on Thursday and Friday showed that the ruling party was actually the brain behind those who registered Young Democratic Party and that it may use this new party to achieve its objective.

The new party had on Thursday asked the Independent National Electoral Commission to postpone the forthcoming general elections.

The party said this a day after the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the commission to register YDP as a political party.

At a press briefing in Abuja, the party called on INEC to re-schedule the general elections if it could not accommodate it on its ballot paper.

It said that contrary to insinuations, the court did not order INEC to only register the party, but added that the commission was ordered to issue certificate and include YDP in the 2015 elections.

National Publicity Secretary of YDP, Mr. Ugo Nwofor, said there were only two options available to INEC, saying the commission could either reprint its ballot papers and include the party with a view to accommodate the party’s candidates or shift the elections.

Shortly after the press briefing, one of the brains behind the YDP was seen at the national headquarters of the PDP in Abuja on Thursday evening, where he said he had come to confer with some of its officers.

In a confidential discussion with Sahara Reporter's correspondent, he said he had come to brief the party on the success of their legal work which made the court to order that the new party be registered.

When Sahara Reporter's correspondent called him on the telephone on Friday whether they were planning a fresh legal option to compel INEC to comply with the court order, he answered in the affirmative.

However, it was learnt that one of the strategies of the ruling party in connection with the YDP is to head for the court and ask that the presidential election be set aside, by pleading that the party was excluded. But if the president wins, it was gathered that the party would not show any interest in pursuing any case in the court.

Nwofor, however, said that the party was interested in contesting the election, adding that this was in compliance with Sections 85 and 87 of the electoral Act.

It was gathered that the party cleverly picked the dates in order to make sure that the election slated for March 28 does not hold or to make it have a legal proof for exclusion.

The party was believed to have known that submission of candidates list for elections expired 60 days to the election.

An INEC official said that the “commission and Nigerians are aware of the provision of the law on this.”

...SaharaReporters