APC accuses INEC, pushes for polls cancellation in A’Ibom

Isaac Job, Uyo

The All Progressives Congress (APC) party candidate in the last Saturday National Assembly Election in Akwa Ibom North East Senatorial District, Mr. Bassey Etim has pushed for immediate cancellation of the just concluded Presidential and National Assembly elections in the State. Addressing a press conference yesterday in Uyo, Etim accused the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr Mike Igini of allegedly conniving with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to manipulate the results of the February 23rd, 2019 election, in favour of all PDP candidates in the state.   He accused the PDP of mobilizing thugs to distort the peaceful conduct of the elections, alleging that no election took place in Akwa Ibom North East as all election materials were destroyed by PDP thugs. He alleged that in Itu local government area, an SA to the governor of Akwa Ibom State, Mr Okon Etim took away the election materials and colluded with INEC officials to give victory to the candidate of the PDP. He said the same incident happened in Uruan local government area but noted that though the incident was reported to INEC and the Police, nothing was done about it but results in those units were declared. He explained that in other local governments where APC had a stronghold, card readers were destroyed, election materials hijacked and electorates harassed by PDP hoodlums. He called for a new date to be set for the conduct of elections in the affected areas. ‘’I believe that what happened in Akwa Ibom State and in particular Uyo senatorial district on the 23rd of February 2019  with regards to the election conducted by the Independent National  Electoral Commission is nothing but a charade. “Judging from what happened that day, where I witnessed irregularities, fraud and violence in the election, I forward a petition to the Chairman of INEC, the State Director of SSS, the Commissioner of Police and the Presidential campaign committee, calling for an outright cancellation of the elections in the senatorial district. “I wish to also bring to your attention, the high level of fraud, violence and other irregularities perpetrated by INEC staff, adhoc staff of INEC, members of the People’s Democratic Party during the election which was supposed to hold. “I also call for the change of the third Resident Electoral Commissioner in view of the perceived bias, miscalculation and various utterances made by the REC which was against the interest of the APC in Akwa Ibom State. “I wish to state categorically that no election known to law took place in all the local government areas making up the Akwa Ibom North East senatorial district. “And it is my prayer therefore that this election be cancelled and a new date be set for the conduct of the elections into the Senate and the House of Representatives, particularly the Uyo Federal House in respect of these areas,” he stated. In Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections, Senator Bassey Akpan scored 147,731 votes, while Mr Bassey Etim of the APC had 60, 930 votes.