Umeh seeks cancellation of Anambra Central Senatorial election over alleged irregularities

Victor Umeh, the senatorial candidate of the All Progressives
Grand Alliance (APGA) in Anambra Central in last Saturday’s
election, has called for the cancellation of the election in the
district over alleged irregularities.

Mr Umeh, who presently represents the senatorial district, made
the call on Tuesday at a news conference at Aguluzigbo in Anaocha
Local Government Area.

Mr Umeh contested the poll with Uche Ekwunife of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) and Sylvester Okonkwo of the All
progressives Congress (APC) with Mrs Ekwunife declared the
winner.

The senator said the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) lost control of the election due to its inability to declare
a winner three days after the conduct of the poll.

According to him, it was obvious that the card readers did not
work in majority of the places in the senatorial district.

“In Awka North Local Government Area for example, the card
readers did not work in more than four or five polling units.

“They had to resort to manual form of accreditation through
which the umpire lost control of the voters.

“It was the same thing in many parts of Awka South Local
Government Area.

“Anaocha Local Government Area, Agulu and Nri communities
particularly, did not use card reader to accredit voters.”

Mr Umeh said in Obosi, Idemili North Local Government Area, both
violence and non-use of card readers for accreditation marred the
exercise.

“The results being turned out from this will show you that card
readers were not used for accreditation because of the high volume
of voters. In Awka South, there were over 40,000 voters said to
have taken part in the election,” he said.

The senator said in his Aguluzigbo area where card readers
worked it took an average of three minutes or more for one person
to complete the process.

“If you look at it, you will discover that it was impossible for
the large figures that were posted in many areas.

“Generally speaking, the election faced a lot of challenges; few
days before the election, the card readers in the state were
destroyed,” he added.

Mr Umeh claimed that the promise by INEC to replace the card
readers did not materialise because what was brought in the end
could not function at the polling units across the district.

“Results were also cancelled in a number of places like in Oba
where the INEC cancelled results in 15 polling units in Oba ward 2;
and INEC has not said anything about those places.”

Mr Umeh said for the credibility of the exercise, the commission
should cancel the exercise in Anambra Central Senatorial District
and do a repeat of the poll.

“It is better to do so than to go ahead and make people to go to
Tribunal; it doesn’t make sense.

“INEC is in a position to do an audit of the election and come
to the admission that they did not use card reader in conducting
the election.

“For the fact that INEC did not keep to its provisions in the
guidelines, the election should be repeated.

“The emphasis made by the commission that they will not accept
manual accreditation for the election that turned to be the general
situation is an indictment of the process.

“When I called the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) to
complain about the anomalies, he said they were looking at the cost
of repeating the election.

“Nothing will be more important than getting something credibly
done; the important thing is to get it right,” he stressed.

(NAN)