Review Imo election, PDP, LP candidates tell INEC

 

The candidates of the Labour Party and Peoples Democratic Party in the last Saturday’s governorship election in Imo state, Athan Achonu and Samuel Anyanwu, have given the Independent National Electoral Commission a seven-day ultimatum to review the poll.

INEC had on Sunday declared Hope Uzodimma of the All Progressives Congress the winner of the election but the two candidates had continued to allege that the election was marred by gross electoral irregularities.

At a joint press conference in Owerri, the state capital on Monday, the two candidates asked INEC to respect the Electoral Act by using the seven days window provided by the law to review the election.

Anyanwu said that there was no election in the state rather allocation of votes to Uzodimma by INEC in collaboration with security agents.

He said that the results in the INEC’s portal is different from the results announced at the state collation centre  which were used in returning Uzodimma as the winner of the poll.

Anyanwu, said, “I feel so ashamed with what the INEC has done. INEC promised a free, fair and credible election. But empty vehicles were moved to Owerri for voters from Orsu LGA. They used armoured vehicles,  security operatives to carry out these irregularities.  How come Orsu gave about 18,000 votes.  This election is a charade. There must be a review of these results. How come a police officer was caught on video carrying ballot boxes.

“It was not an election. it was a war.  Over 70 percent there was no collation of results.  This a PDP state,  where governorship election took two days to conduct. The INEC has seven days to review these elections or cancel outrightly.”

Also speaking, the governorship candidate of the LP said that he would head to the court if the electoral umpire fails to review the election and cancel it

Achonu said, “Where there was accreditation, results were already uploaded before 10 am that is even when voting was ongoing. From the information available to us is even the electoral officers that were sharing  money to other INEC officials and at the same time gave them already written results to upload.

“We have written to the INEC Chairman calling for total review of the election or outright cancellation of the election. That was why the chairman of LP,  called on the INEC to check their IREV for authentic results. They did not listen to him because they had planned it.”

Also speaking, the governorship candidate of the LP said that he would head to the court if the electoral umpire fails to review the election and cancel it

Achonu said, “Where there was accreditation, results were already uploaded before 10 am that is even when voting was ongoing. From the information available to us is even the electoral officers that were sharing  money to other INEC officials and at the same time gave them already written results to upload.

“We have written to the INEC Chairman calling for total review of the election or outright cancellation of the election. That was why the chairman of LP,  called on the INEC to check their IREV for authentic results. They did not listen to him because they had planned it.”