CNPP to INEC Boss: Resign Now!
The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) has called on Professor Attahiru Jega, the Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to resign forthwith for betraying the Anambra electorate and Nigerians in general by conducting a sham election, in the name of Anambra State Governorship Election.
CNPP in a statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Osita Okechukwu and made available to NigerianEcho, the group berated Jega for doing a shady job saying the inadequacy exhibited by INEC has become an embarrassing situation for the Nation.
“We are making this call on the fact that the eminent Professor Jega from available records bungled the single Anambra State gubernatorial election; and this being the case, what are the guarantee that he will not bungle the 2015 general elections?
“We were perplexed that up till this Monday morning when the gross irregularity were clearly made public by the Returning Officer, Professor James Okuoke resulting in the declaration of the result as inconclusive and cancellation of 113,113 votes; Professor Jega behaving like a hired hand on a television interview Sunday afternoon had sort to defend INEC and its failed exercise.
“Jega to our consternation was nervously harping on only 65 Polling Units in Obosi Electoral Ward, even when by his own admission the INEC Electoral Officer whom he claimed had been arrested had messed up the electoral process in the entire Idemili North LGA with 306 Polling Units and total registered voters of about 174,000; claiming that he cannot cancel the total election because of one Electoral Officer’s malfeasance.
“The first valid question to our eminent professor is, is the 113,113 cancelled votes from only Idemili North, where no election took place and where a rescheduled election was supposedly conducted at Obosi and later extended to Abatete and Nkpor Ward 2, without official notification?
“CNPP contends that over 506,000 votes should be cancelled, as it is an oversight on the part of Prof. Jega and his cohorts in INEC to cancel only 113,113 votes and close their eyes to the 174,000 votes in Idemili North, where voting did not place and over 200,000 manipulated votes spread across Anambra West and East, Awka North and South, Ihiala and other uncountable Polling Units, as evidenced by reports of local and international observers”, the statement stated.
On the by election which took place on Sunday, November 17th, CNPP expressed dissatisfaction with such an arrangement noting that Anambra State is predominantly a Christian state as many people who were supposed to be available for the election would have gone to Church.
“Secondly, is it with good conscience that an election was fixed on a Sunday in a predominantly Christian community?
“The third valid question to the eminent professor is can we trust the fate of Nigerians in an incapable, inept and compromise hand to conduct the more sensitive and delicate 2015 general elections?
“In fact the Anambra State Governorship has in no uncertain terms exposed Professor Jega’s palpable ineptitude, gross incapacity, utter negligence and near compromise in managing elections; therefore Professor Jega should resign forthwith.
In sum, we call for the total cancellation of the Anambra State Governorship Election”, the statement concluded.