Connect with us

Politics

Edo APC aligns with INEC on postponement

Published

on

PDP cries to UN, NBA, accuses Oshiomhole of using violence, state power to intimidate opponent, manipulate poll

The Edo chapter of the APC, has aligned itself with the postponement of the governorship election scheduled originally to hold in the state on Saturday.

The party said it had earlier raised the alarm of the influx on militants into the state during the continuous voter registration exercise.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had on Thursday evening, announced the postponement the election after initially saying it would continue with the election despite a call by the Nigeria Police Force, NPF and the Department of State Services, DSS, for the postponement, citing threats of attacks by terrorists and extremists.

The position of the party was made known at a press conference in Benin City on Friday by its state chairman, Anselm Ojezua, saying however that INEC did not consult critical stakeholders before announcing the postponement.

According to Ojezua, it was regrettable that political parties had spent huge resources and time to campaigning in the past weeks before the postponement.
He said: “First, the shift in the date for the election was announced without due consultation with critical stakeholders which include the All Progressives Congress.

“We believe that the timing and mode of communication by security agencies could have been better handled by having regards to the very hard work and huge resources deployed towards the election by all concerned.

Read also: Our Stand: Edo 2016: An unacceptable cock-and-bull story

“Our members have been fully sensitized and mobilized in readiness for the election, culminating in our final campaign at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium on Sept. 6, which recorded the highest level of mobilization ever witnessed in that facility.

“It will, therefore, be fair to admit that the decision has adversely affected us somewhat.

“We are obliged to defer to the decision of INEC particularly when ”security threats” have been cited as the reason for the postponement.

“Although we do not have the details from the security agencies, we have in the past drawn attention to the influx of militants into Edo from neighbouring states during the Continuous Voters Registration exercise.

“Those ones must be lurking around various locations within our state even as we speak.

“All these, with the reported threat by the Governor of Rivers State, Mr Nyesom Wike, to the effect that the APC people should go and write their will, should be a source of concern to any right thinking person.

“You recall that the last time the same man issued the same threat in Port Harcourt, several people lost their lives including youth corps members who had been deployed to assist in the exercise in that State.

“The postponement, therefore, provides an opportunity for security agencies to address these concerns in addition to whatever other threats they may have discovered”, he stated.

By Timothy Enietan-Matthews…

RipplesNigeria …without borders, without fears

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now