APC to PDP: Stop peddling lies about Akwa Ibom Election

The All Progressives Congress on Monday asked the Peoples Democratic Party to stop peddling lies about the work of the Akwa Ibom Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the role of the security agencies in the process.

It also asked members of the PDP to deploy their energy to make their case at the Tribunal instead of whipping up emotions and sentiments that have nothing to do with reality.

The spokesperson of the APC, Lai Mohammed, stated this at a news conference in Lagos.

The PDP had recently accused the APC of conniving with the Department of State Security to upturn the Akwa Ibom state governorship election won by Udom Emmanuel.

The Acting National Chairman of the party, Uche Secondus, who made the allegation, said the APC government was partial and partisan, adding “In fact, the DSS is an arm as of now of APC-led government and they want to forcefully takeover what belonged to the PDP in Akwa Ibom State.”

Mr. Mohammed, however, said the PDP had engaged in an orchestrated campaign of misinformation on the proceedings at the Tribunal and also embarked on a calculated move to denigrate the security agencies, especially the DSS.

He said it was not by accident that Mr. Secondus had led a cacophony of other PDP voices that had been shouting themselves hoarse in an effort to pull the wool over the eyes of Nigerians and distort the real situation with regard to the petition by the APC Governorship Candidate in the election, Umana Umana.

He alleged that those following the PDP chairman’s footsteps were the party’s spokesperson, Olisa Metuh, its Chairman in Akwa Ibom State, Paul Ekpo and the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Uwemedimo Nwoko.

He recounted that the DSS recently invited the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Akwa Ibom State, Austin Okojie, and some other officials working under him to help in their investigation.

Mr. Mohammed said the invitation was made when it was discovered that the Commission had attempted to destroy evidence in election petitions before the state election petition tribunals by shredding ballot papers, immersing them in water, mixing them all up and stuffing them in jute bags which are then left out in the open at the mercy of the elements, contrary to the clear instruction of INEC manual for election officers 2015.

He said, “The state of electoral materials discovered in the course of the forensic examination ordered by the tribunal was so bad that we now know why INEC, in concert with the PDP, did everything to stop the forensic examination of the ballot papers.

“They were petrified by their knowledge of what the forensic examination would reveal. INEC disobeyed three valid orders of the tribunal authorizing the petitioner to conduct the forensic examination.

“After discovering that we had taken photographs of ballot papers from Itu, Ibesikpo, Ika and Uruan that showed the twisted and mangled state of the election material, they stopped us from scanning the remaining local government areas.”

The APC spokesperson said on the few days that INEC allowed the forensic examination, their staff turned up several hours late, adding, “In fact, we lost the first seven days of the 14-day period because INEC said the officer with the key to the store where the ballot papers were kept in Abuja was still in Uyo.”

He said INEC officials who had been the masterminds of the criminal sabotage and disobedience of the valid orders of the tribunal, and were asked to account for what happened to the ballot papers, included Emmanuel Agu, Electoral Officer (EO) in charge of Essien Udim; Obinna, EO in charge of Uyo; Uche Okorie, head of legal, Uyo; and their overall boss, Austin Okojie, the Akwa Ibom State REC.

“We make bold to say that civil servants would not carry on with this level of criminal impunity if they have not come under some influence that is contrary to the good of society.”

“As a matter of fact, it is a reflection of the impunity that was mindlessly perpetrated under the PDP that the former ruling party would misrepresent legitimate investigation into crimes as harassment.

“We would like the PDP to tell Nigerians which country that operates by the rule of law would tolerate the willful, deliberate destruction of evidence in a matter that is before a court of law.”

“The PDP’s noise is to divert attention from its collusion with compromised officers in INEC to institutionalize criminal impunity in the electoral process. Is the PDP saying that law enforcement agents should fold their hands and watch INEC officials break the law with impunity, destroying evidence without accountability?”

He said the PDP rose to the defence of INEC officials who were asked to account for their official actions, asking “Is the PDP, by their meddlesomeness, suggesting that those INEC officials are members of the defeated ruling party?

Mr. Mohamed said the surprising thing was not that the officials of INEC connected to the criminal acts narrated here had been taken in for interrogation over their roles in the established cases of crime but that they were not in jail by now.

According to him, “The photo evidence of their criminal acts, which we have shown, speaks for itself. No matter what the PDP may say, INEC officials have a responsibility to account for how the ballot papers under their care came to be in the state displayed here, which is clearly against the letter and spirit of INEC rules for the preservation of ballot materials after elections.”

On the role of the security agencies, the APC spokesperson said a sticking point in the hearing of the petition in the Niger Delta region was the role of the security agencies, including the military and the DSS.

“We want to state clearly that the military and other security agencies were deployed to the states in the Niger Delta to secure the last general elections and ensure the safety of the voters, because of the threats posed by violence before, during and after the polls. That deployment was beyond the APC.

“But because of the role of the security agencies, the APC can, and indeed has, subpoenaed them when necessary to tell the Tribunals what they saw.  Any of the parties so interested can also do the same.

“To now extrapolate from this that the APC is using the security agencies to harass and intimidate the Tribunals is simply a lie and absolutely irresponsible.”

Mr. Mohammed said the APC was not privy to the reasons for the DSS’ search of the Akwa Ibom Government House recently.

He added, “However, we have no doubt that the security agency acted within its area of competence and authority. We do not see any connection between the search by the DSS and our candidate’s petition before the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.

“We therefore reject any attempt by the desperate and paranoid PDP to cite the DSS action as another instance of the APC-led Federal Government supposed plan to influence the work of the Tribunal.

“To be sure, our government will never micromanage the judiciary, and we also hereby restate our strong believe in the ability of the courts to do their work without fear or favour.”

He urged Nigerians to strongly and dispassionately scrutinize the issues he had have raised, especially the evidence of what INEC officials, working in cahoots with the PDP, did to the ballot papers used for the last general elections in Akwa Ibom, to see whether the electoral officials adhered strictly to the INEC Manual for the 2015 elections.

He also appealed to APC members and supporter in Akwa Ibom to remain peaceful but vigilant, and to repose their confidence in the ability of the Tribunal to do justice to the petition of our Governorship candidate in the last elections.

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