Obi Supporters To INEC Chairman: Resign For Breaching Electoral Act
Following what they described as a breach of the Electoral Act , 2022, the Peter Obi Support Network Diaspora (POSN) has demanded the immediate resignation of Professor Mahmood Yakubu from the exalted position of Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
POSN said that the conduct of the February 25, 2023 presidential election fell short of minimum standards of procedures in election management and completely at variance with international best practice.
It specifically stated that in places where some electronic transfer of results took place, INEC officials successfully uploaded some National Assembly results, but were unable or deliberately prevented from uploading the presidential election results.
The Peter Obi supporters noted that there were deliberate violation of procedures by INEC officials who failed or refused to upload and electronically transmit most of the election results, stressing that the Election body used compromised BVAS that were apparently programmed to block the uploading of presidential election results,
INEC Chairman, Prof. Yakubu had in the early hours of Wednesday, February 28, 2023 announced the results of the February 25 presidential election in which he declared the flagbearer of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner in spite of protests against the Electoral Commission not abiding by its own procedure, rules and guidelines.
In a statement, the UK’s Head of Strategy & Research of POSN, Dr Udeinya Onovo; UK Deputy Coordinator (Operations), Dr Ugo Nweke and Diaspora (Europe) Coordinator, Mr Princewill Urum, decried the Commission Chairman’s failure to fulfil his earlier declaration that the INEC Results Viewing (IReV) portal and Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) would be used.
The POSN described the outcome of the presidential results as “despicable, lacerating, and totally unacceptable”, adding that the elections were marred by gross irregularities leading up to and playing out during the ‘failed’ general election which are evident based extensive study of tonnes of photographic and video pieces of evidence gathered by a team of experts, corporate partners, election observers, the press, and investigative journalists.
It further said; “Very late arrival of INEC officials at many polling stations across the six geopolitical zones, though it appears worse in the southern geopolitical zones, where several election officials either turned up for election duties in the afternoon or arrived with incomplete materials.
“Omission of the Labour Party logo on the election ballot papers in several states in the southern geopolitical zones, for example, Lagos State. Blurred logo of political parties on ballot papers, a serious error raised by the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) presidential candidate during an interview with the Arise News on February 25.
“Hoodlums armed with weapons freely roamed over parts of Rivers, Lagos, Edo, Kogi, and several other states, engaging in daylight snatching and deliberate destruction of election materials in several polling units.
“Armed brutes taking over several polling units in parts of the South-West and South-South, though this appeared more rampant in Lagos and Rivers State, to intimidate both the voters and election officials, destroy election materials, and maim people.
“Discriminatory ethnic profiling was at play, and people of a particular tribe were warned in parts of Lagos State and prevented from voting and forced to stay away from polling units or face dire consequence,
“Large-scale mutilation, manufacturing, and falsification of election results in a manner that is unimaginable and unprecedented in Nigeria’s history,” it said.
