The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in the National Assembly on Tuesday accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the police of plotting to rig the Edo State governorship election in favour of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Addressing journalists in Abuja, the caucus alleged that there was an arrangement between the INEC and the APC to issue sensitive materials particularly result sheets and incident forms to the ruling APC before the election to enable them originate fake results which would be submitted with the assistance of security men deployed to the state from Abuja.
Speaking on behalf of the caucus, House Minority Leader, Rep. Leo Ogor said that the security men deployed from Abuja would act as conveyors into the collation centres, adding that the suspected compromised’ INEC returning officers recruited by the APC would declare the fake election results at polling stations and other collation centres under police protection.
Ogor further alleged that “INEC surreptitiously and in conjunction with APC compiled names and list of INEC staff and persons (ad hoc staff) sympathetic to the APC to superintend over the election, to skew same in favour of the APC.
“Thus INEC staff earlier listed for the election were replaced majorly with people from a particular section of the country, under the claim that most people from the South-South are sympathetic to the PDP.
“Further, APC members were asked to submit list of preferred INEC staff and university lecturers.
“We have reliable information of a grand conspiracy between the All Progressives Congress and some commissioners and staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission to compromise the governorship election in Edo State in favour of the APC.
“This arrangement is firmed between the APC and a highly placed commissioner in INEC. It is pertinent to add that this arrangement was made in the just concluded Bayelsa State and Rivers State elections but same failed as the fake results could not be brought into the collation centre, though same succeeded in the Imo Senatorial re-run.
“That has informed the move to relocate the collation centres in Edo State to Police Stations, to make it easier to receive the concocted results. It shall also fail in Edo State.”
