‎Imo Supplementary Elections: Oyegun Writes Jega

National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Oyegun has written to the ‎electoral body Chairman to express the party’s position on the decision of the electoral body to conduct supplementary elections in Imo State.

The letter dated, April,20, 2015,addressed to the INEC chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega, the APC said it has observed with keen interest the developments in Imo State’s gubernatorial election held on April 11 which was declared inconclusive by the commission.

The letter reads in parts; “Our position is based on the fact that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Imo State erroneously and Perhaps, mischievously included areas where elections took place and results were collated‎, announced, declared and results sheets (Forms EC8A) issued to party agents including agents of the PDP who signed the results sheets (see attached),”

It therefore call on INEC to remove the polling units where elections were held and results declared by the Presiding officers and signed by the party agents.

The summary of the expected voters strength of all the units indicated that, Oru East has 30,404 voters, Isu has 6,+86 voters, Mbaitoli has 10,072 voters while Ezihite Mbaise has 1,329 registered voters which brough the total registered voters in the areas affected to 47,891 registered voters.

APC added that since elections were held in these areas and they were certified by the presiding officers and acknowledge by all party agents, INEC does not have power to cancel the elections.

The party therefore urged INEC to exclude the listed areas from the proposed elections of April 25 and restrict itself to areas where elections did not take place which has a total registered voters population of 98,447.

It said from the facts, it has become very necessary for it as a party to bring to INEC’s notice the manifest desperation of the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Imo State to pervert the electoral will of the people by continuously attempting to add new areas where supplementary elections are to hold to justify his decision not to declare the APC candidate as winner of April 11,2015 Gubernatorial elections, hence the decision to declare the it inconclusive.

APC therefore alleges that the Imo State INEC officials are complicit ‎in the electoral conundrum which took place in Mbaise areas of the state.

“If not, how can one justify the acceptance of results of Ezihite Mbaise that was above the Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) collections for the local government?”

It said when it’s agent pointed it out, the Resident Electoral Commissioner and the State Returning Officer, directed the Local government Returning Officer, Mrs. Helen Ohanyerem to go and revise the figures downwards to accommodate the number of the PVCS distributed in the area and thereafter admitted the revised results.

The party further alleged that the State Independed Electoral Commission officials aided and connived with the military in Mbaise Local Government area and Izombe ward in Oguta Local government and Egbema ward A, Egbema ward B, Ekwuato and Umuagwo ward in Ohaji/Egbeme Local government area carted away election materials and write results which were admitted by the State Returning officer.

“In the light of the foregoing, we of All Progressives Congress (APC) have lost faith in the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) officials in Imo State in their management of elections and hereby call on the chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega to send a new Election Management Team to supervise and conduct the re-schedule supplementary Imo Gubernatorial elections,” the party stated.

The APC said it will find it difficult to participate in any election organised and supervised by the present Imo State Resident Electoral Commissioner and his team as according to the party by their actions, they have been compromised.