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Tony John, Port Harcourt
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has promised to conclude the collation of the Rivers State governorship election between April 2 and 5 as scheduled.
Addressing a stakeholders meeting heralding resumption of electoral activities for the completion of outstanding 2019 general elections in the state yesterday, INEC National Commissioner supervising Bayelsa, Edo and Rivers states, Mrs May Agbamuche-Mbu, assured that the collation would be carried out transparently.
“All the results are with us in our strong room. They have not been tampered with. We are going to conduct the collation transparently.
“INEC is here to complete this process and we shall complete the process successfully,” she assured.
The INEC national commissioner said that though they do not know the winners of the elections, all the results are intact in INEC custody.
“I can tell you for free that we don’t know the winners,” she stressed, adding that INEC would religiously follow the timelines outlined for the collation of results.
The INEC Rivers State Head of Department, Legal, Mr Don Umealor, outlining the supplementary regulations and guidelines for the conduct of elections said that all INEC staff involved in the collation of results would be transparent.
He also said that the political parties would be given the opportunity to comment on the process, but that nobody would be allowed to disrupt the collation process. He disclosed that those entitled to be at the collation centre include: the collation and returning officers, INEC personnel, one polling agent per party or candidate, approved security officials, properly accredited observers, properly accredited media persons and any other person or organisation approved by INEC.
The INEC also announced the 17 local government areas where it has collated results for the Rivers State governorship election.
Administrative Secretary of INEC Rivers State, Elder Etim Umoh listed the LGAs to include: Ahoada East, Bonny, Akuku-Toru, Obio/Akpor, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni, Omuma, Port Harcourt, Ikwerre, Emohua, Tai, Opobo-Nkoro, Andoni ,Eleme, Etche, Ogu–Bolo, Oyigbo, Okrika.
He also disclosed that the LGAs where collation has not been concluded include: Khana, Asari-Toru, Degema, Ahoada West, Abua/Odual and Gokana.
Speaking at the stakeholders meeting, Rivers State governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike blamed the Nigerian Army for the violence witnessed during the collation of results.
He said that Rivers people raised alarm over the plot to unleash violence in the state, but were accused of always crying.
“The only way you can have peaceful election is when the security agencies refuse to manipulate the elections. The Army snatched results and when the people resisted them, the Army killed them. The violence was at the point of collation.
“Throughout my political career, I have never seen the kind of role the Army played. What has happened to the police officer indicted for manhandling of INEC staff during the rerun in 2016? The same officer played negative roles in this last elections,” he said.
Declaring that Rivers has always been peaceful, except during elections when security agencies act negatively, Wike stated that the Army should remove their hands from election matters. He said that the security personnel for the governorship election collation should be made public to avoid illegal actions during the process.
Former President of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogonis, Ledum Mitee urged INEC to publish the names of all security personnel that would man the collation centre for transparency and accountability.
Rivers State Candidate of the AAC, Mr Biokpomabo Awara demanded to know who has the custody of the collated results, saying that the results ought to have been kept at the Central Bank of Nigeria as he later staged a walkout.
