Jonathan’s Ex-Ministers Fail Governorship Bid

Director of Planning Research and Statistics, Ministry of Information and Communciations, Mr Rufus Direh (middle) speaking during the bidding of the 2015 Calender/Diaries at the ministry recently. With him are Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Mrs Cordelia Peterside (right) and Director, Government Press, Bello Olatunde. Photo: Egberi .A. Sampson

Only one out of the seven former members of President Goodluck Jonathan Federal Executive Council who resigned last October to contest the Governorship positions was successful on Monday to fly the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) flag for the February 28, 2015 general elections.
Those who resigned their ministerial positions last Octocber include, Chief Nyesom Ezebunwo Wike, Emeka Worgu, Hon Labaran Maku, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, Samuel Orton, Senator Musilus Obanikoro and Dairus Ishaku.
President Jonathan had directed his ministers with political ambitions to quit their posts on or before 20 October. The party had so far released 14 states Governorship results out of which, only the former minister of state for Education, Chief Nyesom  Wike was successful.
The former Minister of Labour, Emeka Worgu, former minister of state for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, former minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, former minister state for Trade and Industry, Samuel Orton, and former minister of state, Darius Ishaku, could not scale through the primaries in their various states.
In Lagos State the former minister of state for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro was beaten by Jimi Agbaje.
Former Minister of Information, Labaran Maku lost his bid to pick the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship ticket in Nasarawa State to Alhaji Yusuf Agabi.
In Adamawa state- Former EFCC Chairman Nuhu Ribadu won, as Senator Ifeanyi Okowa emerged in Delta state. In Oyo state Senator Teslim Folarin won, Udom Emmanuel was the winner in Akwa Ibom.
Meanwhile the former minister of state for Defence and the Peoples Democratic Party governorship aspirant in Lagos State, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro has rejected the governorship results, stating that the election was marred by irregularities.
He said that the election which saw Mr. Jimi Agbaje emerging  as the party’s flagbearer  after polling 432 votes to defeat him (Obanikoro) who scored 343 votes, while Adedeji Doherty and Babatunde Olalere Gbadamosi polled 21 votes respectively, was not acceptable, stating ” I have never seen an election where ballot papers are counted before sorting..