From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
Abia Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has called for the nullification of the result of last Saturday’s elections in Abia South in which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe winner.
In the result released by the Returning Officer for the election, Prof. Georgina Ugwuanyi, Abaribe scored 49,693 to win the election, followed by LP’s Chinedu Onyeizu who scored 43,903 to come second and Gov. Ikpeazu scored 28,422 votes to clinch the third position.
Speaking through his agent at the collation centre in Aba, Charles Esonu, Ikpeazu noted that INEC had after the election, announced it was inconclusive and wondered why the electoral umpire would afterwards declare the result when elections were not conducted in108 polling units in Obingwa, Aba South and Abia North council areas.
Ikpeazu, dismissing the declaration as a charade and brazen display of partiality, expressed shock that INEC which had earlier confirmed that elections were not conducted in108 polling units in Obingwa, Aba South and Abia North council areas, still declared a winner despite protests from party agents.
Describing INEC’s action as irrational, biased and undemocratic, Ikpeazu demands an urgent nullification of the declaration of a winner in an inconclusive election and the immediate rescheduling of the election in the 108 polling units.
“Nigeria’s problem has been the weakness of our national institutions as manifestly demonstrated by INEC in this election. We call on INEC to be fair and just to all political parties and their candidates, nullify the declaration and reschedule the election in the 108 polling units. This is the only way we can grow our democracy,” he said.
Ikpeazu noted that the 108 polling units where the election did not hold have a cumulative voter population of over 200, 000 which is more than the votes scored by the parties.
He stated that over 50,000 supporters of the PDP could not cast their votes due to the non-provision and late arrival of electoral materials in most of the polling units in the six local government areas of the constituency.
He also alleged that complaints by the PDP agents over the manipulation of election results and bypass of BVAS were ignored by INEC officials
“The first problem was that we didn’t know when the results they are now laying claim for the five local governments came in. We would have been able to scrutinize what they brought in.
“There were several mutilations on the result from Aba South LGA. They also cancelled many units in Aba South. However, elections could not be held in the 108 polling units in 13 electoral wards of Aba South, Aba North and Obingwa LGAs due to non-provision and late arrival of electoral materials”, he lamented.