The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has alleged that the All Progressive Congress, APC, and the Edo State government in collaboration with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to rig the governorship election holding today, Wednesday, September 28, 2016.
At a press conference in Benin on Monday, Chris Nehikhare, its publicity secretary, said that disconcerting facts and data were continually brought up by the party that the state government and APC want to rig elections.
“Very credible information reaching us says that Governor Adams Oshiomhole and his APC have concluded arrangements to thumb print fake ballot papers on Monday 26/9/2016 at Ibillo, Akoko Edo local government area, Edo North, and then transport the thumb printed fake ballot papers to their areas of weakness.
Thereafter they will pretend to expose the perpetrators as PDP supporters.
“This “show” becomes the excuse to crackdown on PDP foot soldiers and undertake massive arrest of PDP staunch supporters. To give credence to the “show” they will plant fake PVC in the homes of our people. At this juncture, we advice that everyone must be vigilant and on alert till elections are over.
“They are planning to destabilise the election in Uromi, Ovia and parts of Oredo in order to provoke inconclusive elections in their areas of weakness. To achieve this, they have recruited a General Collins who APC paraded in a press conference on Friday and he boastfully announced the presence of his co-generals who, including himself, have no business in Edo but to foment trouble.
“Collation Center Danger…we formally requested for a meeting with staff (Local Government Collation Officers, Returning Officer for the State, Staff in charge of card readers, e-Collation Officers and members of the ICT team) of INEC assigned to the state to conduct the elections in Edo State. But that meeting never took place.
“We requested the names and identities of these staff to be made public but again we were denied. However, information available to us is that INEC has granted requests made by the APC for a similar meeting with the above mentioned staff.
“We are also reliably informed that members of APC have been granted remote access to INEC servers and INEC e-collation platforms. We are informed that this was done in furtherance of a plan by certain officials of INEC to grant APC real time access to INEC’s e-collation platforms in a bid to enable them manipulate results on the field at polling stations where they are losing elections or disrupt the electoral process at such locations.
“We also requested for a meeting with senior officers of the Nigerian Police Force assigned to provide security for the state during the elections, again, we were denied. Instead, our members are harassed, intimidated and arrested on trumped up charges
“But we are reliably informed that members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) were granted a similar meeting with these officers and members of APC led by Governor Adams Oshiomhole met with these officers in a bid to influence postings of officers to areas of the state in a manner that will favour their party,” Nehikhare said.
He further explained that one Reginald Okun in Owan West Local Government Area has been bragging about being directed by his party to compile names of PDP leaders to be given to DCP Ahmed Bello to be harassed, intimidated and arrested.
The said Okun, it was alleged, claimed to deploy cultists to the local government who are harassing and, to an extent, maiming their supporters, referring to a case of one of PDP’s agents who had his fingers cut off and is currently being treated in an intensive care unit hospital.
He also claimed that on Saturday night, policemen entered Okpella with four trucks to arrest some PDP members, allegedly on the instruction of the governor, adding “this type of impunity must stop and be condemned by all as this behavior negates the tenets of free, fair and transparent elections.”
ThisDay reports that Edo state, INEC and the Police Command have denied the claims against them.
According to APC State Publicity Secretary, Comrade Godwin Erhahon, in his response to the allegations said;
“the APC as a party is not privy to the planned electoral malpractice. If they have any special person working towards that, they should report to the appropriate security agencies.”
INEC Assistant Director in charge of Public Relations, Mrs. Priscilla Sule-Imuodu responded to the allegations, advising PDP to engage in meaningful campaigns instead.
“I advised them to leave INEC alone and use the remaining 24 hours to campaign and shore up their voters.”
The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Theodore Okafor, advised PDP to report to the police if they can substantiate their stories.
“If they believe that what they are saying is true and can substantiate it, they know what to do. They should report to the police who knows what to do. I do not know of any meeting the police held with APC leaders, I am not aware of it.”
