Senator Benjamin Uwajumuogu, senator representing Okigwe zone in the senate has called for the cancellation of Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections in the zone.
In a statement he signed, Uwajumuogu accused the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP of intimidating voters and causing mayhem in the zone, an effort he said was aimed at disenfranchising the people of the zone who were determined to re- elect him for a second term
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Full Text of his Release:
NEED FOR THE CANCELLATION OF THE IMO NORTH SENATORIAL ELECTION HELD ON SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2019 DUE TO GROSS IRREGULARITIES.
I write on behalf of all APC (All Progressives Congress) agents of Imo North Senatorial zone to formally complain to the Imo state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) about the gross irregularities observed during the National Assembly elections held on Saturday, February 23, 2019 in Okigwe Zone.
Throughout the election, no collation of result was done at the ward levels as required by law, rather all the polling units results were taken to the local government for collation which is contrary to the Electoral Acts law which states that collation should be done at the ward level before proceeding to the local government.
My agents complained that they did not see any ward Collation officers and they contacted the Electoral Officers (EOs) in all the local governments and the Eos confirmed that all the collations are being at the local government.
I too observed same irregularity in my local government and I came to the local government collation centre in Ishinweke, (Ihitte Uboma) and I saw all the CO’s collating polling Unit’s result instead of ward results. Same observation in Obowo local government area and other four LGA in Okigwe zone (Imo North) that I was able to visit during the collation period.
Also, when the presiding officers bring the results, they will be asked to go away while the collation, Officers will be doing the counting. An example is in Umunumo ward, in Ehime Mbano LGA where APC scored 349 votes in one polling unit but was changed to 143 votes in the entire 20 polling units of that ward.
In addition to the above there was massive voilence, snatching of ballot boxes and eletoral materials in most of the wards in my senatorial district. Results generated from the conduct of the election were manipulated in Ehime Mbano, Isiala Mbano, Okigwe and Obowo. In Ihitte/Uboma for instance thugs took over the whole local government, there was sporadic shooting all over and they terrorized the INEC staff and party agents at the collation centre thereby compromising the integrity of the results at the Collation centre thereby compromising the integrity of the results generated from the various wards.
Kindly treat as urgent.
Yours faithfully
Senator Benjamin C. Uwajumogu
The APC Imo North Senatorial Candidate
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