Presidency, militants rigged elections in Rivers, A’Ibom–APC

But in Lagos, the national leadership of the APC accused the Presidency and Niger Delta militants of rigging the elections in two states. The APC, at a news conference by its Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, described the elections in the states as a mockery of democracy. It therefore called on INEC to cancel the elections. The party said, “It is clear that the script for the distortion of the Rivers elections was written by the Presidency and executed by the PDP, the police and militants “As you would recollect, our party’s chapter in Rivers had written a petition complaining of the crass partisanship of the Rivers State Commissioner of Police in the presidential and National Assembly elections held on March 28. “Because of this petition, the Inspector-General of Police, Suleiman Abba, posted three police commissioners from the Force Headquarters in Abuja to oversee the April 11 elections in Rivers State. “As soon as the President learnt of this development, he directed the IG to reverse the decision and instead requested that AIG Tunde Ogunsakin be posted to oversee the April 11 elections in Rivers State.” The APC spokesman said as soon as electoral materials were distributed, a senior police officer in Akukutoru Local Government Area simply handed over the election materials for this local government to the militants. He said upon learning of this development, Ogunshakin ordered that the materials should be recovered and handed over to the electoral officer for the LGA within the next hour. Mohammed said, “Irked by A Ogunsakin’s directive, the Presidency ordered him to leave Rivers State within six hours and a pliant replacement was asked to take over from him. “From then on, unimaginative terror was unleashed on the electorate, in particular on APC members and supporters. It was a straight fight between the police, the militants and the PDP on the one hand and the APC on the other hand.” He said in former Governor Victor Attah’s ward in Ibesikpo Asutan, three contiguous polling units did not receive election materials. Mohammed said that electoral officers even told the APC governorship candidate, Umana Umana, that the election process was marred by security failure, which allowed PDP thugs to hijack election materials and take them to private homes for thumb-printing. The PDP however said it was wrong for the APC to call for the cancellation of the results because there was no way it would not have won the polls in the two states.