2023: I’m not aware presidential screening panel disqualified me – Cosmos Ndukwe, PDP aspirant

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A 2023 presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Cosmos Ndukwe, on Thursday, said he was unaware of his purported disqualification by the PDP National Screening committee chaired by an ex-Senate President, David Mark.

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The PDP had announced the disqualification of two of the 17 presidential aspirants namely, former lawmaker, Cosmos Ndukwe, and a US-based medical doctor, Nwachukwu Anakwenze.

David Mark, the chairman of the nine-man PDP Screening Committee, disclosed this to newsmen after the exercise last Friday in Abuja.

He did not give reasons for the purported disqualification but simply said they did not meet the requirements.

He also noted that the two aspirants will not be refunded their N40m fees paid for nomination and expression of interest forms.

However, when contacted on phone by DAILY POST correspondent over the latest action by the party, the Abia-born Presidential Aspirant, Ndukwe maintained that the party leadership has not communicated the development to him, as he would not comment further on the disqualification carried out by the screening committee constituted by the national leadership to screen the seventeen persons jostling for the presidential ticket of the main opposition PDP in the upcoming primaries.

“I’m not aware of any disqualification by the party leadership, so, I cannot react to that until the party leadership communicates that to me,” he said.

However, the Federal High Court in Abuja, presided by Justice Donatus Okorowo on Thursday shifted to May 10, a hearing in a suit seeking to stop the planned May 28 presidential primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The judge put off the determination of the case following complaints by counsel to the plaintiff, Paul Erokoro, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) to the effect that an affidavit by PDP showing cause on why the primary should not be stopped was served on him late on Wednesday.

Justice Okorowo subsequently shifted the hearing to May 10 and ordered parties to file and exchange their processes ahead of the day.

DAILY POST recalls that a presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former Deputy Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly, Cosmas Ndukwe, had on April 28 brought an ex-parte application for an order of injunction restraining the PDP from proceeding with its scheduled primary election pending the hearing and determination of his suit challenging the position of the party on the issue of zoning its presidential ticket.

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