The Edo State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has elected 222 adhoc delegates ahead of the party’s forthcoming primaries for the Edo Central Senatorial District and Ovia Federal Constituency bye-elections.
The delegates emerged during ward congresses held across the state on Thursday under the supervision of a committee constituted by the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) in Abuja.
Chairman of the Edo PDP Caretaker Committee, Tony Aziegbemi, confirmed the development to journalists in Benin City on Friday. He stated that 153 delegates were elected from Edo Central Senatorial District, while 69 came from Ovia Federal Constituency.
“The ward congresses were peaceful and well-attended,” Aziegbemi said. “Our members came out en masse and conducted themselves in an orderly manner. This is a clear demonstration of the unity and strength of our party at the grassroots.”
The congress committee was chaired by Prof. Okumoko Pearce, with Chinomso Odoemelan serving as secretary. Other members included Inemo Dede, Evelyn Promise, and David Omare.
Aziegbemi also announced that the PDP will hold its local government congress to elect national delegates on July 18, in preparation for the party primaries scheduled for July 21.
He expressed appreciation to members of the party across all wards for their active participation and urged them to maintain the same energy in the coming weeks. “We thank our members for their unwavering loyalty and support. We’re optimistic they’ll replicate this commitment during the local government congress and the bye-elections,” he said.
On the party’s prospects at the polls, Aziegbemi was confident that the PDP would reclaim the two legislative seats. “We are confident that the PDP will emerge victorious in both Edo Central and Ovia. These are traditional strongholds of our party. The people trust us, and they know the PDP always delivers,” he added.
He assured that the party is fully prepared to conduct transparent primaries and will present credible, people-oriented candidates for the bye-elections.
The primaries will produce the party’s flagbearers for the National Assembly seats recently declared vacant by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which has fixed the bye-elections for 16 August 2025.
“The PDP remains committed to internal democracy and will ensure that our candidates are chosen through a credible and inclusive process,” Aziegbemi affirmed.
