Imo LP Assembly Candidates Blame REC for Rigging March 18 Poll

Amby Uneze in Owerri

The Imo State Labour Party(LP) State Assembly candidates in the March 18 election have blamed the State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Sylvia Agu, for supervising the massive rigging of the State House of Assembly election in the State.

The candidates, who addressed a press conference in Owerri, decried the activities of the REC and other staff of INEC for working closely with the State government to rob Imo people of their legitimate votes to their preferred candidates.

In a communique read by the LP  candidate of Orlu State Constituency, Mr. Precious Nwadike,  on behalf of other  26 candidates of the party, however, called for the sack, investigate and prosecution of the REC for allegedly manipulating the entire process of a election.

He also regretted that the said REC, after a court order to allow the candidates access of the certified true copies (CTC) of the results and other electoral documents, has continued to denied them the documents even when it remains few days to the expiration of the deadline.

“We therefore, use this opportunity to alert the general public of the activities of Imo REC targeted at shortchanging our candidates. She must be called to order before it is too late as no one enjoys to be held down in perpetuity without a revolt.

“It is no longer news that the Imo REC for the period of the two elections was seen holding meetings with agents of APC, from where she took instructions to carry out all her hatchet jobs against Imo people and only visited her office with heavy security presence provided for her by the APC-led government of the state.

“It is a shame that the REC compromised her office against being fair and neutral in the discharge of her duties by allowing herself to be used by the ruling APC agents, using the disbanded Ebubeagu security outfit to manufacture results.

“The fact remained that elections were never held in many wards and local governments in the State and the areas election held, it was the LP candidates that won in those areas, according to the uploaded BVAS,” he stated.

The candidates called for the outright cancellation of the Imo State House of Assembly election or make use of the BVAS results uploaded from the polling units.