The candidates of Labour Party, Senator Athan Achonu and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Samuel Anyanwu, in the November 11 Governorship election in Imo state, have rejected the results, calling for its total cancellation.
Similarly, the PDP standard bearer in Kogi State, Dino Melaye, has called on the electoral commission to cancel the off-cycle election in the state.
Addressing journalists at his Umulomo country home in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of the state on Sunday, Achonu alleged that the election was “marred by irregularities, including vote-buying and physical assaults of LP agents, and thus deserving of outright cancellation.”
He further alleged that voting in many locations was done without the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System accreditation, contrary to the assurances by INEC before the election.
Achonu also alleged compromise on the part of the security personnel, adding that “recorded evidence abound such as that of a police officer who voters beat for attempting to snatch a ballot box.”
He commended the LP supporters for their steadfastness in the face of provocation and assured them that they would get justice at the courts.
He stated, “Our democracy was raped in the full glare of security personnel, whose salaries we pay from our commonwealth.
“Collation was suddenly moved from the ward to LG centres, and only APC agents were allowed to enter, while agents of other parties were locked out.
“And to you, my supporters, thank you for your doggedness and steadfastness; you fought hard, and I am proud of you all.
“I have not lost hope in the judiciary; there are so many men of integrity therein, and we shall reclaim our mandate.”
He condemned the assault and detention of the LP Chairman in the state, Mr Callistus Ihejiagwa, at the state collation centre and called for the immediate arrest of those who manhandled him.
“My party chairman was beaten up at the collation centre, as is evident in a widely circulated video. And instead of arresting those who beat him, the police arrested and detained him.
“Let’s save the drift into anarchy; let’s save our country and her democracy. There was no election yesterday, and we call on the INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmoud Yakubu, to cancel the purported results,“ Achonu said.
Also, the deputy governorship candidate of the LP, Tony Nwulu, said that the security agents allegedly provided security to the INEC staff and APC members to subvert the will of the people of the state.
Speaking to journalists on Saturday night, he claimed that electoral materials had been diverted to all the LG secretariats “where rewriting of the election results were allegedly ongoing.’’
Nwulu claimed, ‘’There was no election in Imo State on Saturday. What happened was the electoral materials’ diversion to the people’s homes and the LGA council headquarters. In all this, the police, army, and DSS provided security to the actors.
“They came with vast sums of money to the polling units for votes buying, but the Imo people rejected them. They now resorted to snatching electoral materials and diverting them to the homes of individuals and the LG headquarters, where they are currently rewriting the results.
“In all these things, the police, army, and DSS are providing security to the APC members and staff of INEC in these disgraceful acts. We have all the records. We are informing Nigerians that there was no election in Imo state on Saturday.
“The position of our party and my principal, Senator Athan Achonu, the governorship candidate of the party in Imo state, is that this sham called election be cancelled outright.”
On his part, Senator Anyanwu of the PDP while addressing journalists said that INEC and the security agents failed in their constitutional responsibility to deliver credible elections to the people of the state.
He further said that instead, the security agents protected INEC staff as the APC members rewrote results.
Anyanwu said that he and his party, the PDP, would not accept anything other than a total cancellation of the poll.
Recall Senator Hope Uzodimma of the All Progressives Congress, APC, won his re-election with a landslide victory.
According to the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Returning Officer, Abayomi Fasina, Uzodimma won all the 27 local councils of the state.
He polled 540,308 votes to floor Senator Samuel Anyanwu of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, who scored 71,503 votes and Senator Athan Achonu of the Labour Party, LP, who polled 64,081 votes.
Similarly, Melaye, who spoke at a press conference on Sunday in Lokoja, the state capital, alleged that result sheets were manipulated before the commencement of the accreditation of voters on Saturday.
“Yesterday, there was no election in the five local governments of the central senatorial district in Kogi state. In the end, surprisingly, accreditation was done manually, the BVAS was not used,” Melaye said.
Meanwhile, in Bayelsa, hundreds of PDP supporters staged a protest in Yenagoa, the state capital, on Sunday, demanding that the results of the election conducted in Nembe-Bassambiri, Nembe LG, should not be brought to the collation centre.
The results indicated that the PDP candidate, Governor Douye Diri, had polled 137, 909, the APC candidate, Timipre Sylva, had 73, 503 and LP candidate, Udengs Eradiri, scored 703.
But the PDP supporters stormed the INEC office to protest elections in the APC strongholds, particularly the Nembe LG, where Sylva got 22,248 votes.
But the APC agent at the collation centre in Yenagoa, Dennis Otioto defended the party’s victory, adding Sylva’s agents Ofoni, and Kolokuma/Opokuma were chased away.
The PDP supporters alleged that the election did not take place in Nembe-Bassambiri and that the results from the polling units in the area were concocted.
The protesters marched towards the INEC office on Swali Road but were barred from reaching the office by security agents.
They had converged on the Isaac Boro Peace Park at Ovom on the Mbiama-Yenagoa Road at about 9.30 am before marching towards the gate of the INEC Office along the Swali Market Road.
But as the protesters approached the Swali Road from the Lambert Eradiri Road and moved past the roundabout connecting Mgbi Road, several armed security operatives mounting a checkpoint on the road stopped them from getting close to the junction leading to the INEC office entrance.
The security operatives blocked the road with Armoured Personnel Carriers and several security patrol vans while taking strategic positions around the area.
Speaking in an interview with reporters, the state Commissioner for Education, Gentle Emelah, said they embarked on the demonstration because eligible PDP voters in Nembe-Bassambiri were disenfranchised, and this was unacceptable.
He called on INEC and the State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Obo Effanga, to reject the results from Nembe-Bassambiri, insisting that voting did not occur in the community.
Emelah said, “We are here to tell the world that election is not violence. Election is a serious responsibility. Everyone that is having electoral rights ought to cast his vote.
“But what is happening in Nembe-Bassambiri is not acceptable because you cannot disenfranchise eligible voters and coerce INEC to do your bid. A level playing ground should be provided to every adult of voting age to cast his or her vote.
“We know that there was no election in Nembe-Bassambiri. So, because of that, we are talking to INEC to discard that result. And if at all, let them revisit the Bassambiri issue and ensure that everybody has the right to vote.”
Also speaking, the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Diriyai Dambo, SAN, described the incident in Nembe-Bassambiri as “a rape of democracy.’’
He claimed that the party’s supporters who were travelling to Nembe ahead of the governorship polls on November 10 were allegedly subjected to a life-threatening situation.
Dambo said that balloting was not conducted in Nembe-Bassambiri, particularly in constituencies 2 and 9, and that fake results were written and posted on social media.
Dambo, an indigene of Nembe, said, “If what we are here for is allowed to go on, then there will be a massive rape of democracy. We are here because we were disenfranchised in Nembe-Bassambiri, where I am from. Precisely, on the 10th of November, most of our people, with about 58 buses, left Yenagoa to Nembe with escorts.
“When we arrived, the SWAT Team was blocking the entrance to Nembe with other APC acclaimed youths. They said we should come down for a search. One of our boys, identified as Kile, came down, and they manhandled him. He escaped by the whiskers.
‘’After that, they started threatening us, up to the extent that they threw tear gas at us. They said we could not go in, to the extent that most of them were scared for their lives, so they had to leave.’’
In a worrisome development, some INEC officials have been held hostage in the Brass LG.
In a post on its X handle on Sunday, the INEC called on the police and other security operatives to investigate the situation and facilitate the release of the officials.
The post read, “The unfolding situation in Brass Local Government Area. The Commission is closely watching the situation in Brass LG of Bayelsa State, where our officials are held hostage.
“This is detrimental to credible elections. We call on the security agencies to immediately facilitate their release.”
A man identified as George Sibo reportedly died Sunday afternoon in Twon-Brass, the headquarters of the Brass LG, after he was attacked by a mob believed to be APC supporters.
It was learnt that the deceased, a PDP supporter, was attacked at the governorship election collation centre at the council area headquarters when results from some wards in Constituency 2 were being submitted.
Sibo, popularly called “Kobo-Kobo”, was said to be an indigene of Twon-Brass and an aide to a politician from the local government.
A member of the state House of Assembly representing Brass Constituency 1, Daniel Charles, condemned the gruesome killing of the man.
He urged security agents to arrest and prosecute the perpetrators of the dastardly act immediately.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Asinim Butswat, said he was awaiting the details of the incident from the area commander in Brass LGA.
Meanwhile, the results for Brass and Southern Ijaw LGAs are still being awaited as the INEC has adjourned the announcement of the remaining two LGAs to 12 noon today.
The Head of Department Voter Education and Publicity, INEC, Bayelsa State, Mr Wilfred Ifogah who announced the adjournment after the session was reconvened by 7pm on Sunday, said there are challenges in coalition of some units and wards results of the two local government areas.