HOW JEGA CAN GET IT RIGHT, BY PARTIES, CANDIDATES

By NBF News
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In a letter to INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Lagos State yesterday, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) Chairman, Chief Henry Oladele Ajomale, identified the lapses in the failed National Assembly elections as late arrival of the commission's officials at most polling booths; non-appearance of personnel at several polling stations, and presence of INEC workers at some centres but without ballot papers and result sheets.

Others, according to him, were the production of voters' registers of other states at some polling booths, which implied that such polling centres did not have the appropriate registers; omission of the names of some eligible voters at their polling booths, and absence of policemen in uniform at some centres.

The Labour Party (LP) in Enugu State also deplored the security arrangement in the state during the botched elections.

The party's governorship candidate in the state, Chief Okey Ezea, who expressed concern over the situation, urged the Police, the State Security Services (SSS) and the military to provide the highest security network in Igboeze South Local Council to enable the people freely exercise their voting rights during Saturday's National Assembly polls.

He alleged that the people of the area had since 1999 never voted in any election due to the rigging machinery of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), stressing that writing of results had always characterised the polls in the zone.

Ajomale called on INEC to immediately tackle the deficiencies he highlighted by producing the original manual voters' registers compiled during registration for all subsequent elections and ensure that no eligible voter is alienated. He noted that at Emmanuel Street, Kosofe Local Council where 450 voters were registered, only 50 of the names appeared on the register brought by INEC.

Also, the ACN national secretariat has rejected the alleged plan by INEC to postpone the forthcoming National Assembly election in nine states, including Lagos, to give the commission more time to reprint defective ballot papers or take stock of those used in the failed polls.

In a statement issued in Ilorin, Kwara State, yesterday, ACN National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, warned that failure to hold the National Assembly polls on the same day across the country would be an invitation to rigging and violence.

'Anything short of a simultaneous holding of the National Assembly elections across the country on Saturday is not acceptable to our party,'' he said.

ACN counselled INEC that instead of a fresh postponement of the National Assembly election in the affected states, the commission should go ahead and hold the governorship and state Assembly's election on Saturday, April 9, get the materials needed for the National Assembly poll ready and hold it on April 16, and the presidential election on April 26.

'In any case, nothing is sacrosanct about the present order of elections, which was imposed on INEC by the National Assembly for their own selfish reasons. Fortunately, a court has pronounced that INEC is the constitutionally-mandated authority to prescribe the order of elections.

'Therefore, this is a golden opportunity for INEC to assume that responsibility and reorder the elections along the lines we have suggested, in view of the fact that the commission is reportedly not ready to hold the National Assembly in all parts of the country this Saturday,'' the party said.

Ezea, who spoke against the backdrop of the violence that rocked the area during the postponed National Assembly elections, accused the member of the House of Representatives, Patrick Asadu and the Council Chairman, Chris Omeje, as behind the mayhem.

He claimed that thugs led into the council by the duo attacked the people following their insistence that materials meant for the election were not diverted as well as ensuring that people voted freely.

But Asadu and Omeje accused Ezea of leading the violence in the area, stressing that the LP sponsored thugs, who arrived at the council on Thursday last week, destroyed billboards, posters and other property belonging to the PDP supporters.

The Police in Enugu had on Sunday quizzed Ezea and Omeje, and released them after extracting their statement to be of good conduct and law abiding.

However, in a petition to the Commissioner of Police yesterday, Ezea, who insisted that his supporters would not be cowed out of the election, accused the PDP of procuring guns and fake police uniform for use in the coming elections in the area, explaining that the party had massed thugs at Ivoko, Ishiagu Ibagwa and Alor-Agu.

Ezea further demanded that local, state and federal officials be compelled to obey the provision of the Electoral Act 2010, which provides that political office holders should not act as party agents for either the material distribution or result collation.

He also demanded strict restriction of vehicular movement on the day of the election, especially those with tainted glasses belonging to government officials.

But security agencies in the state have said no serious threats were recorded during last Saturday's botched National Assembly elections.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ebere Amarizu, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the state command did not make any arrests arising from the elections.

He said that whatever story being peddled about high profile arrests were rumours that could not be substantiated.

Lt.-Col. Sagir Musa, Public Relations Officer of the 82 Division of the Nigerian Army, Enugu also debunked claims of disturbances by members of the public.

'We did not record any serious security breach during the cancelled election,' he said.

Meanwhile, the Rivers State chapter of ACN has urged INEC to stop using council secretariats and Government House as its offices.

The ACN state chairman, Mr. Uche Okwukwu, who briefed journalists in Port Harcourt yesterday, feared that the continuous use of council secretariats as INEC offices would not guarantee free, fair and credible election in the state.

But the acting Chief Press Secretary to the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Blessing Wikina, denied the allegation and described ACN members as a group of clowns and liars, who are not ready for the elections.

He said INEC is a federal agency and as such the state government does not have any business giving accommodation to federal outfits, which according to him, showed that the allegation that Government House and council secretariats were being used as INEC offices, were mere lies.

ACN insisted that it had two months ago petitioned INEC over the development, which according to the party, was a complete abuse of INEC centres, yet nothing serious was done about it.

The INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr. Aniedi Ikoiwak, could not be reached as his officials disclosed that he was in Abuja for a meeting with the commission's chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega.

A member of the House of Representatives, Eseme Eyiboh, has appealed to Nigerians to show understanding with INEC over the postponement of the National Assembly elections.

In a statement he issued yesterday in Eket, Akwa Ibom State, the Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, noted that although the development was unfortunate, it was clear that the circumstances that led to the development were beyond INEC's control.

He cautioned Nigerians against blaming anyone for the incident, noting

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HOW JEGA CAN GET IT RIGHT, BY PARTIES, CANDIDATES