Will Imo Assembly Poll Outcome Make Any Difference?

Amby Uneze wonders if the outcome of March 18, 2023, Assembly elections in Imo State will be any different from that of the presidential and national assembly polls held on February 25, 2023.

No doubt the February 25, 2023 presidential and National Assembly elections have come and gone but it leaves a big scar on the face of Nigeria.

It created confusion in the minds of the people due to lack of transparency, lack of due process and alleged falsification of results supervised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials. The outcome of that election has been described by various groups including civil society organizations (CSOs), election monitoring bodies, as sham, charade, sub-standard and lacks credibility to meet international benchmarks.

Based on this, therefore, the forthcoming governorship and States House of Assembly elections slated for Saturday, March 11, 2023 across some States of the federation has lost some enthusiasm, hope and steam.

Having fumbled in the presidential and national assembly elections, INEC is more or less trying to appeal to the conscience of the electorate to come out and perform their civic duties in the remaining governorship and house of assembly elections this Saturday, March 11.

Whether the people would listen to them (INEC) to come out and cast their vote, depends on their desire to see that a new Nigeria is possible.

In Imo State, the same confusion created by INEC during the February 25, election is still very much in the minds of the electorate.

However, the situation in Imo is different because the coming Saturday’s election is only for the State House of Assembly. The governorship election has been scheduled by INEC for November 11, 2023.

The reason for this is because of the Supreme Court judgement of January 14, 2020 which sacked PDP’s Emeka Ihedioha and handed the governorship to the incumbent, Hope Uzodimma of the APC.

The outcome of the presidential election in the country and particularly in Imo State has given hope to a lot of people, especially the youths who voted for the Labour Party’s candidate, Peter Obi. Not minding that the alleged results announced by INEC with regard to the senatorial and House of Representatives election in the State, the electorate across the State voted mainly for the candidates of the Labour Party.

In Imo West, for instance, the results from the polling booths from a few of the local governments where elections held were won by the senatorial candidate of the Labour Party, Chief Charles Ahize. However, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senatorial candidate, Jones Onyereri was stopped by the Supreme Court over a pre-primary matter. Everybody was so surprised that the state actors in collaboration with the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in the State, Prof. Sylvia Agu allegedly cooked up a result that did not originate from the electorate and allotted the same to the APC candidates.

Generally, as confessed by INEC Adhoc staff that were posted to some local governments such as Orlu, Orsu, Oru East, Oru West, election did not hold in those areas. The reason is as a result of the insecurity which had put fear in the minds of the people living in those areas over time.

But surprisingly results emanated from those local governments that did not hold elections. That is another sign of the “Omuma Magic” which was earlier exposed by one of the contestants towards the build-up of the election. The same scenario played out in the Imo North senatorial and Okigwe North federal Constituency election.

According to Dr. Batos Nwadike, a former Presidential Candidate and President General of Leadership By Example League International (LELI),  “no primaries of any the political parties were held in these epicenters of insecurities of Orlu, Orsu and Oru East and Oru West. Political campaigns did not hold in these nearly deserted LGA’s. The world knows this evident fact. The people of these areas would say clearly to the world that reflections about their ancestral homes are receding since three years of evacuation let alone to go and cast votes where they registered. A story they loathe to remember.”

He continued by stating that Professor Mahmoud Yakubu, the INEC Chairman himself, the Imo state REC and officials knew quite well that elections did not hold in  virtually all the aforementioned areas for reasons of insecurity. “Even the published pictures of the polling unit of the Governor where he voted were like a bush with ballot boxes on bare ground and no voters around. What an untellable story! Therefore, generating blood-ridden results from blood areas is the most satanic tribute to the memory of all those who lost their lives and properties in this needless imbroglio, only just for an ephemeral victory in an election. Time and history have shown and recorded that any phantom victory obtained in such a sordid and mindless manner cannot stand.”

The Apex Socio-cultural youth organization of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC)  has alleged that the REC compromised in the election of the Imo West and urged the actors to reconcile with the wish of the electorate.

Addressing journalists after an emergency meeting of the council at the state capital Owerri, the National President of OYC, Igboayaka O. Igboayaka who also hails from the Orlu senatorial district, frowned and condemned in its entirety the alleged electoral fraud committed by Prof. Agu against the zone.

Comrade Igboayaka who witnessed the electoral process within the Zone stated that there was no election in Orlu, Oru-East, Orsu, part of Oru-West and Ohaji Egbema, adding, “but Prof Sylvia Uchenna Agu connived with Local Government Electoral Officers (EOs) to do the shabby job for Hope Uzodinma.”

“From the results that emanated from Isu, Njaba, Nkwerre, Nwangele, Ideato North/South and Oguta, show Labour Party won with a landslide,  we have strong feelings that upturning the mandate of Ndigbo given freely to the Labour Party in Orlu Zone must have gone with the exchange of thousands of dollars, it can’t be ordinary.

“Our intelligence gathering shows that all the Local Governments and some areas wherein election didn’t hold were a stronghold of the Labour Party”.

However, this Saturday’s house of assembly election, if fairly and properly conducted, would witness another round of victory for the Labour Party candidates. The people have made up their minds to vote the ‘Obidents’ all the way. 

The State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma however, told Imo people not to be discouraged by the outcome of the recently held presidential and national assembly elections, urging them to come out on Saturday, March 11, 2023 to vote in the state assembly elections.

The Governor, who made this assertion last Sunday, enjoined Imo people to be more realistic in their decisions, noting that “Nigeria is a national project and there is every need to be part of the Federation.”

He reminded Imo people once more that “government is about the people” hence they should not be discouraged because their preferred presidential candidate or any other candidate for that matter did not win the last election. You should see reasons to come out and vote on Saturday,” he had said.

Turning to his party, Governor Uzodimma promised to do his best to ensure that the APC wins the election on Saturday, even as he advised party members to devote time to organize the Local Government Areas for the task ahead.

While, it is pertinent to enjoin the electorate to come out in their numbers as they did during the presidential and national assembly elections to exercise their franchise and elect their preferred candidates to represent them in the state assembly, it is also important to let the State actors and the INEC officials know that all eyes are on them.