Rivers APC Calls For Cancellation, Rescheduling of Presidential Elections In The State

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, Nigeria 2015 Election Sunday, March 29th, 2015

The Rivers state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has called for the outright cancellation and rescheduling of the state presidential election alleging massive frauds and rigging.

The call was contained in a letter written by the Rivers APC to the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission and obtained by the African Examiner.

The statement reads in full:

The Chairman,

Independent National Electoral Commission,

INEC Headquarters,

Abuja.

Dear Sir,

RE: NO ELECTION IN RIVERS STATE

RE: CALL FOR OUTRIGHT CANCELLATION AND RESCHEDULING

INTRODUCTION:

The All Progressives Congress, APC, in Rivers State, wishes to protest vehemently, and bring to the attention of the INEC, the parody of election held in Rivers State on Saturday, March 28, 2015 which was characterized by deliberate non release of Result Sheets to nearly all the centers, active collaboration and collusion of the INEC staff with the People’s Democratic Party in undermining the credibility of the Election, Violence deliberately orchestrated to scare away voters and the deployment and use of the Police to arrest key and notable APC Party faithfuls even during the election with the sole aim of infusing fear and intimidation on APC followers and removing them from circulation so that there will be leeway for the PDP to operate within the political space unchallenged.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, in Rivers State, Mrs. Gesila Khan, a known associate and friend of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan connived with the Peoples Democratic Party, to disenfranchise the electorate in Rivers State. In several instances, non Corpers were used as Presiding Officers and several card carrying PDP members were used as SPOs.

The result is that, in substance, there was no election in Rivers State.

POLICE ARRESTS AND INTIMIDATION OF APC MEMBERS

On the morning of Friday March 27, Mr Emmanuel Deeyah, the State Party agent of the APC was arrested at the premises of INEC and taken away to the SOS.

Daddy Pokima, the Chairman of Degema Local Government Area and Sokonte Davies, a member of the House of Representatives, were kidnapped and have not been found as at the time of the writing of this petition. The purpose of the kidnap is clear: to remove them from participating in the election and in this regard, several other APC Leaders numbering well over 55 were arrested just before and during the elections. APC members in over 16 LGAS were severely intimidated during the elections including the Chairman of Andoni LGA, Esuku Esuku who is still in hiding till now..

INEC COLLUSION WITH PDP TO COMPROMISE THE CREDIBILITY OF THE PROCESS

On Friday night, an anonymous observer reported that cars were seen moving into the Rivers State INEC office to pick up incidence forms. He particularly saw a white Honda Accord vehicle driving into the INEC office and leaving with incidence forms.

On Friday, the eve of the election, at about 6:30 PM, 40,000 incidence forms were illegally and clandestinely sent to Oyigbo LGA but stopped when the APC Agent complained about it. He was however asked to leave the INEC offices at about 11:30 pm and only allowed to return by 6am the next day.

120,000 incidence forms were to be sent to Port Harcourt LGA and 80,000 sent to Obio/Akpor and 50, 000 for Ikwerre LGA. No forms were sent at all in almost all the other LGAs.

It is curious that Incidence Forms which are designed to be used only after an identified voter is unable to complete biometrics identification, could be made available in advance when no incidence had occurred.

THE ABSENCE OF RESULT SHEETS IN NEARLY ALL VOTING CENTERS:

Perhaps, the most egregious aspect of the glaring irregularities and breaches in the election is in the area of a willful and deliberate non availability of Results Sheets in nearly all voting centers. This was deliberately made so as to pave the way for the writing of the results thereafter.

For the avoidance of doubts, no result sheets were sent to Emohua, Ikwerre, Omuma, Etche, Akuku Toru, Ogu/Bolo, Okrika, Asari Toru, Ahoada East, Bonny, Khana, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni, Ahoada West,Abua/Odual, Oyigbo and some parts of Port Harcourt. In Opobo/Nkoro LGA, result sheets were distributed in only 3 out of 11 wards. In fact, in Boms Hall Voting Center, it caused a near total break down of law and order as some enlightened voters and APC faithfuls insisted that unless they were shown and allowed to examine the authenticity of the Results Sheets, they would hold up proceedings. To make matters worse, the Presiding Officer when asked about the Result Sheet, retorted that he would write the result on a piece of paper and give to agents!

It was when the crowd became tumultuous that they communicated the INEC office that rushed in what looked like Result Sheets and by this time, confidence in the process had been undermined.

In almost all the LGAs (about 16 LGAs), there were no incident forms yet voters were illegally accredited normally. Several thousand persons with fake PVCs whose cards were rejected as non-INEC cards by the Card Readers were accepted (in the face of strenuous objection and protests by the APC and other party Agents present) for accreditation even without filling the incident forms. This was worse in Khana, Gokana, Tai-Eleme, Oyigbo, Emohua, Ikwerre, parts of Obio/Akpor, Okrika and Ogu/Bolo. In Gokana for example, the Electoral Officer, Mr. Akpan publicly announced that there were no elections in the LGA. The Presiding Officers in Opobo/Nkoro LGA admitted that there were no elections in the LGA because hoodlums seized the sensitive materials meant for the elections.

Even as this letter is being written, there are reports that thumb-printing and collation of false results are currently going on at the following known places:

Landmark Hotel in D/Line, Port Harcourt owned by Olaka Nwogu the PDP Senatorial Candidate for Rivers South East.
Jora Hotel in D/Line, Port Harcourt.
Senator Lee Maeba’s house in Luwa in Khana LGA of Rivers State.
Emma Anyanwu’s house in Ulakwo in Etche LGA of Rivers State.
Eugene Minimah’s house in Opobo.
Kelechi Nwogu’s house in Omuma
Police Station, Kpor in Gokana LGA in Rivers State.
Hope Ikiriko’s house in Ogbologbolo in Ahoada West LGA in Rivers State.
Krisdera Hotel, Omoku in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA in Rivers State.
Mike Elechi’s farmhouse in Elele, Ikwerre LGA in Rivers State.
Barrister Harvey Ideozu’s house in Ahoada, Ahoada East LGA in Rivers State.
Iboroma Kichener’s house in Akuku-Toru LGA in Rivers State.

Also, one Ejoh Orusa the Ward Co-ordinating officer for Port Harcourt LGA took the result sheets for the LGA to Hon. Austin Opara’s house at Nsirim Crescent in GRA, Port Harcourt for thumb printing and collation.

Gokana – Ward 9 Unit 18:

INEC materials were provided but without the original Result Sheet. Community members and voters asked INEC officials to produce the original Result Sheets before accreditation can commence and that was not done resulting in preventing the exercise from taking place. The result is that no voting took place in Gokana.

Still in Gokana, Senator Magnus Abe and the Gokana LGA Council Chairman, Mr. Kadilo Kabari were attacked by policemen and PDP thugs masquerading as INEC officials who were facilitating the thumb-printing of ballot papers by PDP members at the Divisional Police Headquarters Kpor, headquarters of Gokana LGA. Also attacked were some aides of the Senator. The policemen who threatened to shoot the Senator and his aides, pushed the Senator and hit the Council Chairman leading to his falling on the ground.

USE OF NON-CORPERS AS PRESIDING OFFICERS AND REPLACEMENT OF TRAINED AD-HOC PERSONNEL WITH KNOWN PDP THUGS FOR ELECTIONS

In Gokana local government also, trained-INEC ad hoc personnel were replaced with untrained manpower suspected to be PDP members. It was believed to have been done in connivance with the LGA, Electoral Officer, EO.

These same actions were also replicated in several other LGAs including Khana LGA where in Wards 6, 9, 16 17 and 18, the Returning Officers, Presiding Officers and Assistant Presiding Officers are all known PDP members. In Okrika LGA, there was a sudden change and appearance of fresh and non-trained INEC ad-hoc personnel. This also happened in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area and other LGAs.

VIOLENCE AGAINST APC MEMBERS

In addition to all the above, the Police, curiously, were also used to inflict violence on our members, sometimes, resulting in death.

In Akuku-Toru Local Government Area, the DPO declined deploying officers and men resulting in materials being distributed without the police accompanying the process to the various units. Soldiers and over 30 officers and policemen posted to Akuku Toru for the election were withdrawn to the residence of Dr. Tammy Danagogo, Nigeria’s Minister of Sports, Abonnema. Armed militia-men were on the streets stopping voters from going out to vote. About 30 APC members have so far been arrested in Abonnema.

In Ward 7 Unit 3, PDP armed militia men have been beating up APC members. Akuku Toru:

Yet no voting took place in these areas. In Abonnema Ward 9/4, there was no voting while INEC officials are seen writing the results.

DPO of Abonemma Kayode Joseph was wounded in the head while escorting Commissioner for Urban Development Isobo Jack to the polling unit while thumb-printing was going on in Iboroma Keitchener’s house in Akuku Toru LGA Ward 17, Unit 11. Keitchener is a former member of the Rivers State House of Assembly. APC agent in Akuku Toru Ward 2, Unit 3 was abducted and remains in the hands of his kidnappers. Those kidnapped were Imaeinoye Tony and Oola Sampson. All materials were also hijacked. In ward 3, unit 3. Voters were chased away after accreditation

In Omuma Local Government Area, materials were snatched by one Kelechi Nwogu in company of Nigeria Police Special Anti-robbery squard SARS and in the process, shot at one APC supporter, Mr Charles Nwuke while in Okrika,Okrika Local Government Area, hometown of Mrs Jonathan, the PDP had all the result Sheets in their possession. As soon as the materials arrived, they were first taken to the home of Ibibia Walter, the Rivers State PDP Secretary. There were no materials in any unit for a while. When they finally appeared, the original result sheets were missing.

CONCLUSION AND PRAYER:

It will fill a volume should we document ALL the irregularities that characterized this election. We decided to state only the highlights and the obvious but for a detailed understanding of the level of electoral malpractices, we hereby attach a more concise statement of the areas and extent of the irregularities in some of the LGAS as appendix 1 and a list of persons injured and killed as well as properties destroyed and damaged as appendix 2.

IT is now indubitable that had INEC remained Independent as it is statutorily and constitutionally expected to be and not collude with the Police and the rival Political Party of Peoples Democratic Party, the Election would have enjoyed credibility and support whatever the outcome.

A situation, as we have demonstrated here, where voters are made to vote when there is no Result Sheet for obvious reasons, where Police harass, arrest and intimidate voter and party faithful even during election day or even during voting, cannot be said to conduce to free, fair and credible election.

We want to firmly state that there is nowhere in the world where this SHAM AND DEBACLE that happened in Rivers State can be glorified as an election and allowing this to stand is to posit to the entire World that allocation of votes and massive irregularities and malpractices will be allowed as long as the perpetrators are able to carry same out.

We urge the Hon Chairman of the Commission to use your good offices to set aside the sham now described as Election in Rivers State and order another Election if the will and wish of the people to choose a leader of their choice is paramount to the Commission in line with its Statutory and Constitutional mandate.

Yours Sincerely,

Chief Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya (JP)

Chairman APC, Rivers State

Sudden change and appearance of fresh and inadequately trained NEC;
These INEC staff tried to persuade voters to use manual accreditation as they claim that card readers assigned to Okrika LGA polling booths not working (even without trying them);
In a few units where APC supporters insisted on “No Card, No Accreditation”, the card readers mysteriously began to work. But in majority of the places manual accreditation is being undertaken;
Insufficient delivery of electoral materials delivered to the LGA by INEC. Up till now no one, not any party agent, has seen the original result collation sheets. The INEC officials claim it’s not every that they must explain. Meanwhile, INEC delivered incident forms far excess of the number of registered voters;
PDP stalwarts are openly parading bundles of PVC cards in their possession.
Militants attacked Polling Units to disrupt voting after the accreditation of voters, so that they will use the accredited number to do mass thumb-printing.
In Ibuluya Ward 5, Unit 2 Okrika LGA militants were brought in to attack APC members.
They visited homes of APC stakeholders, all APC members have been forced out of the community.
In Okrika Ward 12 Unit 6 Okrika Ogoloma, there were no ballot box, no ballot paper.
After manual accreditation, at about 2:35, they asked other party members to move away and massive thumb printing began
PVC cards that were not taken by owners have been collected by PDP members to use for voting.

In Andoni home of Deputy Governor Tele Ikuru he assembled some IT specialists to hack into and manipulate INEC computer system in Andoni local government area on Saturday morning in his hometown Ikuru in Ikuru Town, his home town. Prior to that troopers of heavily armed police/ military personnel have surrounded the house of Andoni Local Government Area, Hon. Esuku Esuku, to effect his arrest. Esuku is a Caretaker Committee Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

In Eleme, Soldiers attack APC youths. Soldiers have attacking APC youths in Alesa Eleme. They were chasing about and arresting APC youths in Alesa. Soldiers shooting along the Roman Catholic Church Road. They were led by Mr. Olaka Nwogu, a senatorial candidate on the platform of PDP. Ngowah Ejor, and Mr. Obo Obaa, 2 PDP leaders in Eleme, alongside Mr. Olaka Nwogu, the PDP Rivers South West senatorial district candidate. Electoral materials have been hijacked and taken away by Mr. Ejor. In Eleme Wards 1, 2 and 4 had no functional Card Readers. Ward 3, Card Readers were working but INEC officials and PDP thugs de-mobillised the Card Readers.

Accreditation and voting did not take place in Alode (Two) in and almost all the wards in Eleme Local Government Area because the presiding officers refused to declare result sheets to the party polling unit agents. The stalemate remained till about 2:15 pm when PDP members led a team of mobile policemen in a police vehicle with registration number: NPF 2316 C and carted away electoral materials from polling units.

In ward 2, two APC supporters shot dead. No elections in most parts of Eleme.

In Tombia in Degema, there was scant presence of security personnel. In Tombia, in same Akuku Toru local government, PDP had by Friday night filled the community with Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, bouncers who were attacking APC members and at the same time, preventing those returning home to vote entering the town. They were doing so in the presence of the few soldiers who were present. The Caretaker Committer Chairman and others were injured on Friday.

There were lots of shooting in Tombia with militia men going round threatening that whoever voted for APC would have their hands chopped off. Accreditation ended but PDP militias would not let people cast their ballots. There were unconfirmed reports that Chairman of Degema Local Government Area, Hon. Daddy Pokima, was kidnapped. The Chairman was travelling when he was whisked away from his boat and bundled into another boat and taken to an unknown location. Materials hijacked by PDP as IYC attacks Chairman, others

In Abua/Odual there were no materials in some wards while in the few wards that had materials they arrived very late. In ward 2, PDP militia men in red Fez-cap kidnapped Darlington Oku, an APC leader in the Ward.

In Ikwerre; In Ubima, Governor Amaechi hometown, there were no result sheets his ward. Also in Omerelu Ward 16 – No result sheets, in Omerelu Ward 5, there are no Result Sheets in the 16 Units. Voters refused accreditation unless the result sheets were produced. kwerre: At Omuanwa in Ikwerre LGA, accreditation was peaceful but APC is planning a boycott due to the absence of result materials. Pandemonium has broken out in Ozuoha Ward 11in Ikwerre local government, fake result sheets were distributed in the 9 Units in the area. Attempts by voters to correct the anomaly was resisted by PDP members who unleashed a band of armed men dressed in police uniforms who have been punishing people.

One Sampson Chinnah was shot in the legs. Former Ikwerre local government Chairman, Hon. Kerian Wobodo, was attacked and injured on the head by PDP thugs. His younger brother , Charles Wobodo, received machete cuts. Several Card Readers were also hijacked while PDP’s armed men had intensified search for APC faithful in Ozuoha who had fled. At Elder Chidi Wihioka’s Unit 6 Ward 3 in Ikwerre local government, all electoral materials have been hijacked to an unknown place by PDP thugs. Other Units suffered similar fate. In Ward 13, unit 9 there were no result sheets. In Ward 11- APC member shot dead by a PDP member.

PHALGA: Dakuku Chidiebere Okwuwolu, a Director in the Greater Together Campaign Organisation, has been arrested and taken away to the headquarters of the Olu Obasanjo Divisional Police headquarters.

In PHALGA Ward 9 Unit 10 St Paul’s, security operatives have picked up the APC Polling Agent, Mr. Wosu Kinikanwo. Card reader not working in Ward 10. PHALGA Ward 4, Units 2 and 4 – Card Reader not working.

Abonnema: Voting taking place without accreditation. Card Reader has been abandoned. PHALGA: Hon Austin Opara and his wife, Hon. Justice Margaret Opara, accredited manually. PHALGA: Ward 7 – Victimisation of voters. PDP thugs flogging voters.

New report – Hon. Sokonte Davies, a member of the Federal House of Representatives representing Bonny/Degema, kidnapped in Tombia by a group of PDP militia.

PHALGA: Orogbum Primary School – 2 Card Readers not working. PH Primary School – 1 Card Cad Reader not working. 4 Units in Sangana Ward 4 PHALGA. No Card Readers. PDP was writing results in different locations across the state. This explains why there are no result sheets.

Omuma: Dread-locked policemen invade units

Suspected cloned armed policemen in dreadlocks and bears have taken over several Voting Units in Omuma local government. As policemen cannot be in dreadlocks, it is suspected that the dreaded armed men are PDP militia men. Unit 9 and 10, Ward 9 no result sheet. They are wearing SARS uniform but not police. The people have beards and dreadlocks. In Ward 14, Unit 3 no result sheet. Military men safeguarding PDP and parading the community terrifying the APC members.

Kaani Ward 6 in Khana – Returning Officers, Presiding Officers, and Assistant Presiding Officers in Khana Ward 16 are all PDP members.

Obio/Akpor – Ward 16, Units 29, 30, 31, 32 Ward and 33. No materials. No accreditation. Ward12 unit 22, Obio/Akpor INEC official just arrived. They are all known PDP members from the community with the exception of the youth corpers. Ward 16 Obio/Akpor: No INEC officials. Ward 10 Unit 6 Odogbolu – No material. Wards 7, 8, 9, 10 – No Result Sheets.

Ogu/Bolo: All APC Ward Agents have been chase out of the LGA with police and army by Hon. Evans Bipi.

Khana: Ward 6, Khana: No result sheets. Ward 9 – No Result Sheets.

Omuma: Emeka Nwogu said there are no result sheets. He has brought in SARS and soldiers to terrorise voters.

Opobo/Nkoro: Harold Peterside PDP agent in unit 006 Ward 3 Opobo/Nkoro caught with INEC Register and fake Results sheet @ the polling unit.

Ogu/Bolo: In Ward 7 Units 2 and 5 Card Readers not functional.

In Buguma which is in Asari Toru Loc; government, policemen were busy all day arresting chieftains of All Progressives Congress, APC.