Abe: Rivers Guber Poll Was Marred By Violence

Kingsley Nwezeh, Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja and Nume Ekeghe in Lagos

The governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Rivers State in the March 18 election, Senator Magnus Abe, yesterday declared that the governorship election in the state was marred by violence.

He said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the security agencies were compromised and described the election as a charade and a sham.

Speaking during an interview on Arise News Channel, Abe condemned the ignoble role of INEC and the security agencies.
The senator alleged that they supported the injustice and violence that occurred during the gubernatorial polls, saying the security agencies were complicit and stood by while people were threatened.
He also accused INEC of reporting results with suspicious figures for Ahoada West Local Government Area where he claimed the collation exercise was marred by violence.

The SDP candidate also condemned the traditional rulers in the state whom he alleged threatened those in their communities through the use of town criers.
He alleged that such communities were told that if they wouldn’t vote for a certain candidate, they should stay at home.
“People were intimidated,” he said, while noting that businesses were threatened as well.

He denied allegations of vote buying levelled against the SDP, saying the party did not send out any amount of money to that effect.
He said the state government instead of conducting investigations into the violence and killings during the election, focused instead on how the SDP got tags for the election.

On his failure to win his ward and local government, he said he was only assured of one vote he could deliver and that was his vote.
“If the people of my ward decided not to vote for me, it is their choice, and their vote should be respected. I do not have the power to deliver any vote except for my own”, he said.

He said he would gladly repeat the process all over again, stating that he was proud that he could stand for his rights as a candidate.
“Rivers people know who won the election. They also know who did not win the election. I am very proud of the fact that I stood up for my rights and that Rivers people stood with me”, he said.