ANAMBRA POLL 2013: APC, APGA in close battle •Protests, allegations trail election; voters blame INEC •SSS arrests, releases el-Rufai

THE governorship election held on Saturday in Anambra State witnessed a plethora of hiccups, as the three dominant political parties in the election continue to battle for supremacy as of press time.
Investigations by Sunday Tribune indicated that there were outrages in many parts of the state over the conduct of the election.

APGA candidate may have upper hand
There arose indications that the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Willie Obiano, might emerge victorious in the election as feelers from the field showed he might have upper hand.

PDP candidate’s name missing from voter register
Early sign that outrage would trail the election emerged at about 8.00 a.m. when the name of the candidate of one of the frontline political parties in the election, Mr Tony Nwoye, was declared missing from the voter register.

Indeed, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reported that he was stopped from voting in the election.

Also missing from the register during the Saturday election were his father’s and uncle’s names.

Nwoye told NAN that he discovered the problem in the morning when he went for accreditation at his ward at Offia-Nta Polling Unit 004 in Nsugbe.

According to him, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials had assured him that the problem would be resolved, a promise that unfortunately did not materialise.

“I am disappointed at the turn of events here. I was here as early as 8.00 a.m. to be accredited with my father and uncle, but found out that our names were missing in the INEC register.

“I was an honourable member and candidate for Anambra East and West in 2011 and I voted in this same polling unit. At which point did my name get missing from the register?” he queried.

NAN reported that a similar situation played out in Akabo Ward 3 in Nnewichi of Nnewi Local Government Area, where names with alphabets ‘K to O’ were also missing from the voter register.

Arthur Eze’s name also missing
Chieftain of the PDP, Chief Arthur Eze’s name was also said to be among those who could not find their names on the voters register, a development that disenfranchised him too.

Ngige calls for election cancelation
The Director of Media and Communication of Ngige Campaign Organisation, Chief Charles Amilo, while accusing the INEC of conspiring with the ruling party in the state to rig the election, called for its cancellation.

Speaking with some journalists on Saturday, Chyief Amilo alleged that the commission deliberately distributed voters materials late to areas considered as APC’s strongholds just to short-change the party’s candidate.

His view tallies with the position of the national leadership of the APC which has threatened to reject the result over what it termed as irregularities.

Meanwhile, Ngige had, himself, earlier accused the INEC of betrayal by the “shoddy manner” it conducted the election.

Ngige accused the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Professor Chukwuemeka Onukogu, of rigging, saying he single-handedly went to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to collect the voting materials without party agents.

He added that the voters register given to the parties by the INEC before the election was not the same with the one they saw in the election proper as some names were missing.

Ngige alleged that in areas considered to be his stronghold, voting materials were brought without result sheets, stating that he was still watching the situation.

He also said that in his ward in Alor community and other communities in Idemili North and Idemili South, accreditation was delayed so as to disenfranchise the people.

Ezeemo, Ubah decry late arrival of materials
Candidate of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), Chief Godwin Ezeemo, frowned at the late arrival of materials in some parts of the state.

Ezeemo, who was accredited around 10.50 a.m., told NAN on Saturday that election materials arrived very late in his ward at Umuchu in Aguata Local Government Area of the state.

Similarly, the Labour Party (LP) candidate, Chief Ifeanyi Ubah, complained about the late arrival of materials, adding that he was accredited by 10.30 a.m. after waiting for about two hours.

Accreditation of voters in some areas was not smooth due to the same late and non-arrival of electoral officials and materials.

NAN reported that officials at Ntakara Primary School in Ogidi Ward 2 received their materials at about 11.25 a.m., while at Central Primary School, Nkpor, Ward One, INEC officials were not seen.

At Uruowere in Obosi, materials were incomplete, a development that made the electorate to wait endlessly.

I have no reason to fault election now –Ubah
Ubah, however, said he had he no reason to fault the election until the results were released.

“I am hopeful they will do well; for now, no complaint,” he said.

Similarly, candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Dr Willie Obianor, expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the election.

Flood victims narrowly escape disenfranchisement
In another controversial development, dozens of voters who lost their belongings and voter cards to the 2012 flood in Anambra East Local Government Area of the state were almost excluded from the election.

Although the names of the people appeared at polling units 006 and 007 at Ezi-Agulu and St Jude Church, Aguleri, with their pictures, polling clerks declined to clear them for participation.

They, however, complained to the traditional ruler of Aguleri, Igwe Christopher Idigo, when the monarch and members of his cabinet arrived for accreditation.

The monarch immediately alerted the Supervisory Presiding Officer, Miss Chinenye Okonkwo, who summoned all the polling agents of the governorship candidates.

The party agents agreed that many voters in the area would be disenfranchised as a result of the flood if not allowed to vote, and concluded that those whose names and pictures appeared should be identified and allowed to vote.

SSS detain, release el-Rufai in Awka hotel 
It was learnt that scores of agents of the State Security Services (SSS) invaded a hotel where the deputy national secretary of the APC and former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, lodged overnight.

The officials of the SSS, reportedly refused to let el-Rufai leave the hotel to monitor the.

Sources, however said the officials told the former minister that he was being prevented from going out of the hotel for his security as he is a “big man.”

Soldiers arrest 25 violators of restriction order
Sunday Tribune also learnt that in Idemili North and Idemili South Local Government areas there was heavy military presence.

But it was along the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway that 25 young men were arrested for violating the no-movement order given for smooth conduct of the election.

The soldiers, stationed at the Abba Junction in Njikoka Local Government Area, arrested and detained the men, who are of voting age, around 7.30 a.m.

Lieutenant A. O. Quadri, who led the team at the checkpoint, told NAN that the men were arrested for violating the movement restriction order.

APC vows not to accept results, if... 
The APC, on Saturday, warned that it would not accept results of the election, if voting did not take place in all local government areas of the state, especially in the party’s strongholds of Idemili North and South as well as Awka South.

The party gave the warning in a statement issued in Lagos by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

The APC also condemned the INEC for what it described as its apparently-contrived logistic nightmare that had left thousands of voters unable to exercise their franchise, and demanded the immediate removal of the state REC, Professor Onukaogu.

The party, while tagging Onukogu as incompetent and conniving, said it was totally astonished to learn that INEC had confirmed that materials meant for Idemili North Local Government, which had 180,000 voters, had been hijacked, without saying who hijacked the ballot papers and why, and without explaining why the materials meant for APGA and PDP strongholds were not hijacked.

The APC said equally astonishing was the fact that the voters registers for Idemili South, Dr. Ngige’s local government, did not contain the names of voters in the local government, despite the assurances by the INEC chairman Professor Attahiru Jega.

Voters blame INEC over lapses 
As voting gradually ended in some parts the state, some electorate, including the state Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Dr Edozie Aroh, criticised the lapses witnessed in the exercise.

Aroh blamed the lapses on the poor dispatch of materials and personnel by INEC, adding that any result from the area would not be acceptable to them.

Reacting to the situation in Abatete, Idemili Local Government, Mr Onataluchi Ogwuikpor, a voter, who said he had been at the community hall since morning, expressed worry over the situation.

“We are confused; nothing is happening; we have been at Eke-Abatete since 7.00 a.m. There have been movement of vehicles in and out of this place; all I wanted to do was to cast my vote  and go home but I cannot do that.”

At Ifite-Abatete voting unit, only three people voted before they revolted on the grounds that there were no result sheets.

Corroborating the Abatete situation, the commissioner expressed sadness that voting had not commenced as at 3.30 p.m.

“It is a poor showing by INEC; in spite of decentralising the distribution of materials to ensure easy access, we still did not get materials; people are protesting; they insist they won’t vote without the result sheets in place.

“We suspect foul play because materials should have been in place by 9.00 a.m.; they said that the corps members were on strike, among other reasons.

“If results are released for Abatete, it will not be acceptable to us here,” the commissioner said.

Domestic observers laud INEC
However, some domestic observers who monitored the election on Saturday lauded the INEC over “the orderliness observed during accreditation of voters.”

The observers, under the aegis of Alliance for Credible Elections (ACE), said that apart from pockets of disorderliness, the prevailing atmosphere showed that INEC had put in a lot of effort into organising the election.

The spokesperson for the group, Ms Ngozi Agu, told NAN that their observations had given them confidence in INEC’s capacity to conduct a successful election in Anambra.

“What we observed today, the orderliness, early arrival of materials and INEC personnel was impressive. We are also pleased that so far, the violence hitherto predicted, was yet to be seen.

“We are equally pleased with the way the people are conducting themselves in a peaceful manner.”

She said that the group had been to Njikoka, Oji, Otuocha, Aguleri and Umuleri and that the election went on smoothly in those areas.

“The heavy presence of security as we observed, has made those who might have planned to misbehave to be afraid,” she added.

INEC reschedules election in 65 units
Meanwhile, INEC has announced that the election has been rescheduled in 65 polling units.