Senator condemns governorship re-run polls in Taraba

• Says Jega’s image at stake over voiding of election
• Aisha, APC guber candidate, SDP demand cancellation
• Groups accuse INEC returning officer of taking sides

THE action of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Returning Officer to Taraba State, which led to the cancellation of the governorship election in the state, is capable of soiling the hard-earned image of the commission’s Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, who had worked tirelessly round the clock to ensure a free and fair election.

These were the words of the Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Bwacha, while fielding questions from newsmen in Jalingo, the state capital.

Wondering why the Returning Officer, Prof. Mohammed Kyari, cancelled the entire elections in Donga Local Council when “only five polling units had problems”, the need for the commission to call him to order before he succeeded in destroying the good work of Jega, he believed, has become relevant.

According to him: “If he had acted in error by cancelling the results, all he should have done is to call for the acceptance of the results, entered the result figures and announced what we have on ground.”

Though optimistic the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would still triumph after the re-run, which is scheduled for April 25, 2015, the Returning Officer, according to him, “has no power under the law to cancel the election of Donga Local Council.

In another development, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in the state, Senator Aisha Alhassan, has called for outright cancellation of the inconclusive governorship and House of Assembly polls held last weekend.

Addressing reporters at the National Secretariat of the party in Abuja, she said the call was based on the widespread irregularities in most of the local councils of the state.

Aisha said in the event that the overall result is cancelled and a fresh election ordered, such should not be conducted under the supervision of the current INEC officials in the state.

Also, members of concerned citizens of Taraba State yesterday rose from an emergency meeting in Abuja with a call for the removal of Prof. Kyari who is the Returning Officer for INEC in Taraba State during the governorship election.

Spokesperson of the group, Mr. Nierus Johnson, who addressed reporters at the secretariat of the Abuja chapter of the NUJ, also demanded the immediate removal of the Taraba INEC official.

He also demanded that the PDP candidate in the governorship election in Taraba, Mr. Darius Ishaku, be declared winner since he had already met provision of Section 53 of the Electoral Act (As amended).

Flanked by members of the group, he argued that it was unfortunate that INEC official ignored laid down rules by not declaring Ishaku the duly-elected winner of the polls.

The need for INEC to re-conduct fresh governorship election in Taraba State has become a source of concern to the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Chief David Sabo Kente.

Citing pockets of violence, alleged manipulation of election results by the PDP, massive presence of heavily-armed military personnel intimidating and harassing voters, among others, INEC, according to him, ought to go as far as annulling the entire results for the state.

In the same vein, the Taraba Voters Watch and Taraba Coalition of Women Groups, have passed a vote of no confidence on Prof. Kyari.

In separate press statements made available to journalists yesterday in Jalingo, the state capital and signed by President of the Taraba Voters Watch, Bernard Ada and Co-ordinator of the Taraba Coalition of Women Groups, Hajiya Mairo Abdullahi, the groups said they have uncovered plans to rig the forthcoming Saturday’s governorship re-run election in favour of the major opposition party.

Briefing journalist in Jalingo, the state capital, Kente expressed dismay at the way and manner the exercise was carried out in the state, stating that “in the particular case of Taraba, the process was totally militarised.”

According to him: “In the presidential election, an Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) and a large number of foot-soldiers were deplored to the southern part of the state.”

“As if that was not enough, the number of military men deplored to the area during the governorship election, was scary.”

Citing Bali Local Council where in spite of the skirmishes that erupted in 20 polling units, yet the entire election of the council was not cancelled, his decision to cancel that of the entire Donga “when only five polling units had problems”, Bwacha said this shows that the Returning Officer is playing the script of a particular political party, hence the urgent need to be shown the way out by INEC.

He said: “Why didn’t he cancel the election in Bali where there were issues in 20 polling units? Going by his action, clearly you will know that he has something in mind.

“It was a huge blunder to have cancelled the election in Donga. He has no reason whatsoever to cancel the results.”

Urging INEC to, as a matter of urgency, declare the former Minister of State for Niger Delta, Darius D. Ishaku, winner of the governorship election, Bwacha, who said that the action of Kyari “is a flagrant abuse of the law”, described PDP as a peace-loving party.

The re-run election, The Guardian learnt, would be held in 10 local councils of the state, which include Donga, Bali, Takum, Ussa, Zing, Yorro, Jalingo, Kurmi, Karim-Lamido and Wukari.

Flanked by officials of the party, including the National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, Aisha said that INEC officials in Taraba have shown sufficient evidence of bias and complicity in the election.

She said that a total overhaul of INEC in the state should be a pre-requisite for any fresh election in the state, adding that it would be acceptable if INEC could set aside the declaration of inconclusive result for Taraba State and the results of all the areas affected by irregularities in the 11 local councils cancelled outrightly after which a fresh collation should be done and a winner declared.

Calling on INEC to immediately launch a probe into the conduct of the April 11 governorship election in Taraba to ensure the rights of the people of Taraba State to choose their leaders are not abridged by conniving with INEC officials, security and desperate PDP members, Aisha said considering the partisan posture of the security in the state, there should be massive redeployments in the interest of fairness and justice.

Kente further said: “In each case of their deployment, the soldiers, as made known by him, did more than their sacred duty of providing security for the electorate, but were used to provide cover for those who rigged the elections and intimidated the electorate, all with the full co-operation of INEC officials.”

Noting that the electorate were not allowed to vote and elect their would-to-be leaders, he said elections in the state were characterised by “ballot box snatching, stuffing, results’ manipulation and rigging.”

The card readers, as further revealed by Kente, were not used in most places, meaning that “the results of the just-concluded election cannot be said to be a true reflection of the wishes of the people of Taraba State.”

Kente, who expressed sadness at the way and manner religion and regional coloration was introduced into the politics of the state as was evident in the pattern of voting in the last election, such a system, he believed, could further divide the people