11th December, 2016
The Ogoni community in Rivers State erupted in jubilation on Sunday as Magnus Ngei Abe was returned as the Senator-elect of South East Senatorial District.
Announcing the results of the rerun election held on Saturday, the INEC returning officer for the Rivers South East Senatorial District election, Prof. Onuekwusi Gideon Chinedum, said Magnus Abe (APC) polled a total of 125,938 votes while Olaka Nwogu (PDP) scored 25,394 votes.
Also, he stated that Kingsley Onyekwere (LP) scored 549, Comrade Oke Brown, (NNPP), 46 and Brown Elfreda (UDP), 99 votes respectively.
Prof. Chinedum said: “Magnus Abe of the APC having certified the requirement of the law and scored the highest number of votes is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected”.
Meanwhile, Rivers State Governor, has declared that PDP won the Rivers East Senatorial District and Rivers West and demanded that INEC should declare the results of the senatorial districts which PDP candidates won without tampering with them.
Governor Wike also called on INEC to immediately release the results of Andoni /Opobo-Nkoro Federal Constituency and Andoni State Constituency also won by the PDP.
In an interactive session with journalists on Sunday, Governor Wike said it has never happened in the history of elections that the Rivers East Senatorial District result declaration exceeded 24 hours
According to him, the result of Rivers East senatorial district was held down by the INEC, Army and Police to manipulate the results of Emohua and Ikwerre Local Government Areas for the purpose of concocting the senatorial results in favour of the APC.
He said: “As I speak with you, they are doing everything possible to rewrite the result of Emohua Local Government Area to ensure that the APC wins”.
The governor said that since the conclusion of voting, INEC has been playing pranks by moving the collation centre back and forth from Emohua to Port Harcourt to create room for rigging.
“For now, all the collation officers have refused to be compelled to declare false results. As such, the collation officers have left and INEC has resorted to using its internal staff for the collation of results.
“Release Rivers East Senatorial District where Senator George Sekibo won clearly. Release Rivers West Senatorial District where Senator Osinakachukwu Ideozu won clearly. INEC should release Andoni/Opobo-Nkoro Federal Constituency where Abiante has won and Andoni State Constituency where Ikunyi Ibani has won clearly,” he said.
He described as unfortunate the deliberate use of the Nigerian Army to deny PDP agents access to collation centres, so that INEC staff can concoct results.
“It is most unfortunate that that they will descend to the level of win at all costs”, he said.
The governor reiterated his earlier assertion that the Nigerian Army and SARS personnel were deeply involved in the violence that characterised the elections. He alleged that the violence claimed five lives in different parts of the state.
He said that the half hearted denial of the involvement of military personnel in the election evaporated in the face of overwhelming evidence of their misconduct during the polls.
“When the security is apolitical, you have free and fair elections. But when the security descends into the arena, the entire process is compromised,” the governor noted.
However, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2015 general elections, Dr Dakuku Peterside has labelled Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, a serial liar over claims by the governor that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) won the Rivers East and West Senatorial Districts in last Saturday’s rerun election.
Dr. Peterside who stated this in a chat with newsmen in Port Harcourt, called on members of the public to disregard the statement credited to the governor, insisting that only INEC has the constitutional power to officially declare results.
According to him, the results of Rivers East election, especially as it relates to Emohua and Ikwerre local government areas were still being collated by INEC, wondering how the governor came about his own result.
He added that another local government in Rivers East, Etche had issues in some units and wards, thus making it improper for the governor to rush to press to declare results.
As regards the Andoni-Opobo/Nkoro Federal Constituency, he noted that the APC had previously won the rerun election in Opobo/Nkoro local government area, while the result from Andoni local government area was still being awaited from INEC.
Peterside, who is also the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) also denied claims by the governor that the PDP won Rivers West, stating that one of the local governments in the zone, Akuku Toru, had not been collated and announced by INEC and as such, no official result can be declared.
He cautioned Wike to respect the decision of Rivers people to vote out a “deceitful governor that has continued to embarrass the state with his utterances and actions unbecoming of the position he occupies.
Meanwhile, the declaration of Magnus Ngei Abe as the winner of the Rivers South East has ignited jubilations in Ogoniland.
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt