Victor Ezeja
AdminAhead of this Saturday’s off-season election, tension has risen to a fever pitch in Owerri, Imo State, following yesterday’s meeting which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was meant to have with participating political parties and other stakeholders in the State.
The governorship candidates of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP), Senators Samuel Anyanwu and Athan Achonu had staged a walkout from the meeting to press home their demand for the redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Imo, Prof. Sylva Agu.
The meeting was staged by INEC as part of its pre-election interactions with the governorship candidates, security agencies, the media, civil society organisations, and other stakeholders in the Southeast state.
A participant at the stakeholder meeting, Steve Nwabuko, of the Cultural Credibility Development Initiative (CCDI) told Prime Business Africa that “Ominous times are already discernible in the 11th of November election in Imo state”, adding that “INEC needs to quickly restore confidence to party stakeholders ahead of the election.”
It was gathered that trouble started after INEC’s National Commissioner representing Southeast, Kenneth Ukeagu, who stood in for the Commission’s Chairman, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, suddenly asked journalists to leave the meeting, even though they were initially invited.
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Some party representatives would have none of that as they asked: “Why should the Press be asked to leave the meeting venue? What is INEC trying to hide?” LP’s deputy governorship candidate, Mr Tony Nwulu, and that of PDP, Jones Onyereri, who represented their standard bearers, and other officials of the opposition political parties vehemently opposed Ukeagu’s directive which came immediately after his opening remarks.
Nwulu specifically asked if the parley was “a secret cult affair” and alleged that there were plans by INEC to rig the election in favour of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state. Governor Hope Uzodimma is the APC candidate in the fast-approaching election.
Onyereri, while speaking in support of Nwulu, displayed copies of documents he described as fake result sheets posted on the INEC portal during the House of Assembly election in the state. They argued that journalists, as critical stakeholders, could not be excluded from the meeting.
Nwabuko, who is the Secretary-General of CCDI further told our reporter, “In 2020, it was a controversial Supreme Court ruling. In 2023 INEC is showing signs of compromise and incredulity in a meeting it ought to be completely neutral.
“How can you ask the fourth Estate of the realm to quit a public gathering in Imo State? If the meeting were to be held in INEC headquarters in Abuja, you can lock out the Press but not so in a stakeholder meeting at Owerri.
“If Imo State implodes on 11/11/2023, INEC’s gaffe bears credence as an ‘interested’ umpire in Imo State election by singling out the Press that ought to report the truth as it is from a very important stakeholders meeting in Owerri.
“I hope the authorities will not blame IPOB and ESN if the outcome of the election becomes unsavoury,” the civil society activist added.
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