. A\ Ibom APC: We Withdrew Because INEC Is Bias
. A\Ibom PDP: Akpabio, APC Are Jittery of Failure
From Akanimore Kufre, Uyo
There is visible tension in Akwa Ibom State following soaring war of words in the camps of both the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, and the All Progressives Congress, APC, ahead of today’s re-run ordered in Essien Udim Local government Area by the Court of Appeal sitting in Calabar.
Both the PDP and APC have been accusing each of perfecting plots to unleash trouble and deploy political thugs to foment trouble in a bid to disrupt today’s polls. This is further accentuated by widespread apprehension in the state that some political stakeholders have allegedly perfected plans to use thugs to unleash mayhem and rig the elections. Not-withstanding this development, the Independent National electoral Commission (INEC) insists it is going ahead with the scheduled re-run between the PDP and the APC.
However, in a curious twist, the Akwa Ibom State Chapter of APC announced earlier yesterday that it will not take part in the re-run holding in Essien Udim local government Area today citing allegations of bias and lack of transparency by INEC as its key reason for withdrawal. Addressing a press conference in Uyo , the chairman of APC in Akwa Ibom state, Mr. Ini Okopido, maintained that his party will not take part in the re-run for any of the positions because. “Mike Igini, (the Resident Electoral Commissioner of INEC) has shown unprecedented bias as INEC REC.”
He added;”. If he conducts any election, APC will always withdraw. We don’t have any confidence in him. We are so dissatisfied by the conduct of INEC in Akwa Ibom, so we have withdrawn,” Okopido said the party had done everything humanly possible to substitute Chief Akpabio, Minister of Niger Delta Affairs who was its candidate for the Akwa Ibom North West senatorial election with Obongemem Ekperikpe Ekpo but INEC has not been forthcoming. He said “the party’s candidates for Ikot Ekpene/Obot Akara/Essien Udim federal constituency was ready for the election but will no longer participate in the rerun because of the obvious bias of INEC in the State”. The party chairman also claimed that neither the tribunal nor the Appeal Court “ordered a re-run or supplementary election for Essien Udim state constituency specifically” and that he was shocked to find INEC list Essien Udim state constituency for the rerun.
He added: “There is no way in the judgment that the Appeal Court ordered a rerun or supplementary election for Essien Udim state constituency. The rerun for Essien Udim state constituency is an illegal act, that is why I cannot be part of it”
But the Akwa Ibom State Chapter of the PDP in its reaction said the APC is jittery because it knows that the State called Akwa Ibom is a PDP stronghold and that Akpabio also knows he would fail woefully hence his decision to purportedly withdraw from the election.
According to the PDP, they themselves as a political party are fully prepared and well mobilized to participate in the re-run in Essien Udim today. According to the State PDP spokesman, Barrister Ini Ememobong “ the current statistical gap with which Senator Ekpenyong is leading Senator Akpabio makes the APC jittery because they all know that it is not possible to close that wide gap. “ Barrister Ememobong, also noted that the public shouldn’t allow itself to be deceived by Akpabio’s group antics : “It is on record that the margin of victory currently outstanding is in tens of thousands of votes which have not been affected by the judgment of the Court. It is only in Essien Udim that a re-run has been ordered specifically. We are waiting for them.”
He added; “ We are all fully prepared for the election tomorrow in Essien Udim. Everybody and the whole World knows that INEC re-ordered a re-run specifically in Essien Udim. We are surprised why they are jittery . They are talking of substitution and from there they are now talking of not participating in the election. They are afraid because they know they are not popular and that if election is done over and over again PDP will defeat APC any day. We are not afraid. We e sensitized our people. We should all be on guard to watch. Let all of us go and participate in tomorrow’s re-run in Essien Udim Local government Area.”
Though Akpabio had in a letter written to APC National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole withdrawn from the re-run citing reasons of national assignment, and stated that he should be substituted, INEC has been insistent that the time span for political parties to substitute candidates in the election had elapsed and that the re-run would proceed with the original candidates that sat for the election in the first instance(APC’s Akpabio and PDP’s Ekpenyong).
Recall that both the APC and PDP had on Thursday continued to bicker, accusing each other of plotting to unleash violence on the people and rig the rerun in the Essien Udim Local Government, thereby raising apprehension. PDP National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, had in statement said a DIG had allegedly promised a serving minister that with proper funding, he would do “the same thing that was done in Bayelsa State during the November 17, 2019 governorship election” in favour of the APC.
Ologbondiyan said, “As part of the strategy, the DIG promised to deploy a more senior Commissioner of Police than the one in Akwa Ibom State to take charge of the command.”He added that part of the plot was to seek the transfer of the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr Mike Iginni, and replace him with an already compromised official. Ologbondiyan said, “We are concerned about the plot to deploy huge number of policemen into a local government and put them under the control of such an officer as a DIG.
“It is extremely suspect, as past experiences across the nation had shown that such deployments led to violent confrontations, killings, maiming and massive intimidations of voters that only aided election riggers and other anti-democratic forces to compromise electoral processes.”
However, Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Yekini Nabena, in response to PDP’s allegations said Igini planned to frustrate the APC as a political party. Nabena in a statement faulted Igini for fixing the election in Essein Udim State constituency on Saturday without a valid order of the court. He said: “It is on record that Senator Godswill Akpabio challenged INEC and the Court of Appeal upheld his appeal, nullified the PDP’s fraudulent victory and ordered retrieval of the certificate of return given to the PDP senator by INEC.However, the Court of Appeal ordered repeat election in only Essien Udim Local Government Area of the state, Senator Akpabio’s LGA.
“Senator Akpabio now a Minister of Niger Delta Affairs has opted out of the repeat election citing his current higher responsibilities to the nation and the continuous occupation of INEC office by a compromised REC.”
To close analysts, today’s re-run is a defining political battle for the control of Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial jurisdiction with many dynamics at play. It is crucial because it would have provided Akpabio and his team an opportunity to establish some APC’s presence in the Senatorial Zone in contention but following the Party’s withdrawal from the race, that opportunity now seems foreclosed, at least, for now.
Recall that Ekpenyong and Akpabio had contested the February 23, 2019 Senatorial election. According to INEC, Akpabio scored 83,158 votes while Ekpenyong polled 118,215 votes, with the electoral body declaring Ekpenyong the duly elected winner in the election. Ekpenyong has a total of 114, 973 votes from the nine LGAs in the Senatorial district that are not affected by the judgment to Akpabio’s 76,917 votes. The 10 LGAs that make up Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial zone, with current dynamics, show the following pattern as announced by INEC:
The 10 LGAs: How Akpabio and Ekpenyong currently Stand Going by INEC’s figures…
1. Abak(Ekpenyong Leads)
2. Ikot Ekpene (Akpabio Leads )
3. Ukanafun(Ekpenyong Leads)
4. Ini(Ekpenyong Leads)
5. Obot Akara(Ekpenyong Leads; Ekpenyong’s LGA)
6. Oruk Anam(Ekpenyong Leads)
7. Ikono(Ekpenyong Leads)
8. Etim Ekpo(Akpabio Leads)
9. Ika (Ekpenyong Leads)
10. Essien Udim(Akpabio’s LGA: election cancelled, and a re-run ordered by the Court Appeal: Who Wins tomorrow’s re-run here? )
NB: In the election, Akpabio leads in 2 LGAs while Ekpenyong leads in 7 LGAs. In overall, Ekpenyong has a total of 114, 973 votes while Akpabio has 76,917 votes..
Recall also that Peter Ogban, the INEC returning officer for Akwa Ibom State while declaring Ekpenyong winner of the election, had said the later polled a total of 118,215 votes to defeat Akpabio who scored 83,158 votes.
Not satisfied with the outcome, Chief Akpabio headed to the Election Tribunal to challenge the election, alleging that the poll was marred by irregularities. But the Election Tribunal upheld the election of Ekpenyong(Ukarakpa). Akpabio then approached the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal nullified the elections , and ordered a re-run in Essien Udim local government area within 90 days.
