BY BY BENEDICT NWACHUKWU, ABUJA
Jubilations engulfed Owerri, the capital city of Imo State over the relocation of the Elections Petitions Tribunal sitting in Owerri to Nasarawa State on Monday by the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem.
As a result, a cross section of Imo people and political leaders under the aegis of Imo Political Stakeholders Forum have lauded the President Court of Appeal and Imo election petition tribunal Judges for taking the decision to relocate its sitting from Owerri to Nasarawa State.
The Point gathered that the National/State Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal, sitting at the old High Court premises, Owerri, Imo State capital, relocated at the weekend to the High Court Complex, Opposite Shopping Malls, Mararaba Nyanya, Nasarawa State.
A media statement signed by the Publicity Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association, Owerri branch, Daniel Odiba said, “This is to notify all lawyers, litigants and the general public that the National/state Assembly Election Petition Tribunal, Owerri, Imo State, has been relocated to the High Court Complex, opposite Shopping Malls, Mararaba Nyanya, Nasarawa State.”
Reacting to the development, the Imo Political Stakeholders Forum in a statement by its leader Sam Nwandu expressed optimism that with the relocation the tribunal would no longer be hindered as they would now have the atmosphere to look into how election results above bimodal voter accreditation system were announced by the INEC in some constituencies in the state.
The statement by the Forum read in part, “With this relocation we believe that it will give the judges the right atmosphere to look into how election results above bimodal voter accreditation system BVAS, were announced by the electoral body INEC. Most of the actual results of the February 25th House of Reps, Senate and House of Assembly election of March 18, were in no doubt contrary to original results as voted by the indigenes in that election.
“INEC BVAS was active during the February 25 and March 18 National and State Assembly elections including the Supplementary election and going by the uploaded results through www.inecelectionresults.ng, what INEC declared was in complete variance with the uploaded figures by BVAS. For instance, in Okigwe Federal Constituency, the total accreditation uploaded in the INEC BVAS machine was not same with the huge figures of over 40,000 used in declaring APC winner against the Labour Party that won the election.”
The Forum in its statement claimed that in Owerri municipal where less than 14,000 was accredited over 70,000 was used to declare APC winner against the Labour Party candidate. In the State Assembly seat for Ideato North local government, the PDP scored 5,063 votes as against the APC of 4,097 votes and the result was uploaded on inec server but APC was declared winner against the PDP candidate who won the election with figures above INEC accreditation record.”
It further claimed that in Mbaitolu Federal constituency won by Labour, accreditation figures were manipulated to declare APC winner in a supplementary election they lost, in Oguta/Ohaji/Oru West Federal constituency that PDP candidate Kingsley Uju was leading despite his arrest on election day, APC was declared winner with election figures above the BVAS recorded accreditation figures, whereas in Orlu Federal Constituency which was lost by APC, figures above accreditation numbers was used to declare APC winner.
“In Okigwe Senate and Orlu Senate results were announced for APC with “manufactured” figures above the total number of votes accredited by the BVAS machine same situation in Ahiazu Mbaise where Results were announced with fake BVAS accreditation in favour of APC.
“Outrageously, that of Owerri Municipal council as announced by the INEC returning officer showed that APC scored 79,043 votes, LP scored 12,765 votes, PDP scored 9, 674 votes. It goes to show that in Owerri Municipal council, BVAS was not used to conduct the election; these issues should be looked at critically by the Judges and ensure that justice is served, and citizens confidence in Electoral process restored.”
The Forum further claimed that in Imo State the electoral system was rapped and afterwards set on fire and the only way to quench that fire is for the Court to look into the political and electoral “madness” that happened during the 2023 general election and restore the people’s confidence in the electoral system and reaffirm their hope in the Judiciary by voiding all the fraudulently announced results with figures above accredited voters number or manipulated BVAS accreditation numbers that were done in some of the constituencies especially during the supplementary elections.
