The Akwa Ibom North East (Uyo) Senatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bassey Etim, has called for the cancellation of last Saturday’s Senatorial elections in the District.
In a petition addressed to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Mahmood Yakubu, and the Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, he alleged that the election was marred by irregularities, violence and fraud.
He accused the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and staff of INEC of working together to manipulate the process.
In the petition titled “Irregularities, Violence and Fraud in the Elections at the Akwa Ibom North East (Uyo) Senatorial District – a Petition for an Outright Cancellation of the Elections in the Senatorial District,” Etim, identified several acts of irregularities in the local governments of the District, based on which he insisted that “no elections known to law took place in all the local government areas making up the Akwa Ibom North East Senatorial District.”
Read the full text of the petition below:
I wish to bring to your attention the high level of fraud, violence and other irregularities perpetrated by INEC Staff, ad-hoc staff of INEC and members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) during the elections which were supposed to hold earlier today. Please refer to the earlier protest letter sent to your office when we noticed the romance of INEC Akwa Ibom State with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In ITU Local Government Area, one Hon. Okon Etim Okon, an SA to the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, took away the election materials for Units 10 – 16 and thereafter colluded with the INEC officials to give victory to the candidate of the PDP. In fact, he, along with other hoodlums, abducted the NYSC ad hoc staff posted to Ayadehe. This incident was reported to the INEC REC and the police, yet the results in those units were still declared when it was apparent that no elections took place. However, in areas where the elections held, like Units 02, 04, 06 and 09, and the APC won, the results were cancelled, without any explanations.
In URUAN Local Government Area, the INEC officials colluded with the PDP and declared results where no elections took place. For instance, at Units 007 and 008 of Southern Uruan Ward IV, the result sheets were taken to the house of the Chairman of the Board of Inland Revenue, and scores allocated in favour of the PDP candidates, despite protests. Similarly, in Ikot Otoinyie, there were no result sheets, yet at the collation centre at Nung Oku Uruan, the collation was allegedly done with results manufactured by the INEC officials in collaboration with the PDP agents. In Ward 10, Uruan Local Government Area, where elections actually took place, the INEC officials refused to include the authentic results, which were in favour of the APC candidate, in the final collation of the results.
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In Nsit Atai Local Government Area, the elections were marred by violence, vote buying and intimidation of voters who refused to sell their conscience. Two houses belonging to APC chieftains were burnt in the Local Government Area, in the presence of security operatives who refused to take any actions to either stop the hoodlums or even to arrest them. In areas where elections actually held, the Collation Officer introduced a two-format mode of collation of the results with a view to short-change the candidate of the APC, thereby giving undue advantage to the candidate of the PDP. The said result sheets (please see the attached copy) were marred by unexplained cancellations and mutilations, all aimed at favouring the candidate of the PDP.
In Nsit Ubium Local Government Area, there were no result sheets available in most of the wards, yet the INEC officials still declared results and gave victory to the candidates of the PDP.
In Nsit Ibom Local Government Area, there were reports of multiple voting by PDP members, hijacking of materials, intimidation of voters, as well as outright bribing of INEC officials. Elections therefore could not hold in most of the wards and polling units in the Local Government Area, yet the Collation Officer still announced the result of the election in the said Local Government Area.
In Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area, the INEC officials gave victory to the candidate of the PDP even without any collation of the results from the different polling units and wards. Election in the Local Government Area was also characterised by violence, intimidation, non-arrival of materials and hijacking of the materials at units where some of the materials were made available. Additionally, Permanent Voters Cards belonging to others were used to vote and the PO ignored same even when his attention was brought to this irregularity. In Ibesikpo Ward II and Asutan Ward V, where the results were in favour of the APC, the results were cancelled. In Unit 003, Ward III, the SA to the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Prince Uwem Ita Etuk, mobilised thugs who destroyed the card reader and tore the other election materials when it became apparent that the result was not going in favour of the PDP.
In Ibiono Local Government Area, the election materials were hijacked and taken to the house of the PDP Senatorial candidate and scores allocated in favour of all the PDP candidates.
In Etinan and Uyo Local Government Areas, the situation was the same as what transpired in the other local government areas, with mutilated result sheets, hijacking of materials and generally allocating of scores to favour the PDP candidates. For instance, in Ward 6, Unit 4, Uyo Local Government Area, the result for instance, in Ward 6, Unit 4, Uyo Local Government Area, the result sheet was full of unexplained mutilations to favour the candidates of the PDP.
In the light of the above situation, I wish to state categorically that no elections known to law took place in all the local government areas making up the Akwa Ibom North East Senatorial District.
It is my prayer therefore that these elections be cancelled and a new date set for the conduct of elections into the Senate in respect of the said senatorial district.
