Coalition of Registered Political Parties (CRPP) and Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State, Jarret Tenebe, yesterday, exchanged words over a viral picture showing Tenebe wearing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) vest.
 
Tenebe was in the online photo portrayed as an Election Observer in last Saturday’s Ekiti State governorship election.
 
Reacting to the viral photo in a statement, National Chairman of the CRPP, Samson Isibor, stated that the presence of Tenebe in Ekiti as an Election Observer represented a dangerous assault on the integrity, neutrality, and credibility of Nigeria’s electoral process.
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According to Isibor, the action of Tenebe raised serious questions about the independence of INEC and further validated growing public concerns that the electoral umpire has become compromised and increasingly partisan.
 
He said it was unacceptable that INEC could permit such a glaring conflict of interest and gross violation of the principles of electoral neutrality.

Isibor added that such an act sent a wrong signal to Nigerians and created the unfortunate impression that there was no longer a clear distinction between the ruling party and the institution constitutionally empowered to conduct free, fair, and credible elections.
 
He added: “For an individual who occupies a strategic leadership position in the ruling APC to be adorned in official INEC identification during an election is a disgraceful development that undermines public confidence in the democratic process.
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”The Ekiti incident has further reinforced the widespread belief that the APC has effectively captured key democratic institutions, including INEC, thereby compromising the transparency and credibility of elections in Nigeria.
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‎”The CRPP further demands a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding the participation of Tenebe in the Ekiti governorship election and insists that those responsible for this embarrassment to Nigeria’s democracy be held accountable.”
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But in a shift reaction, Tenebe, during a telephone interview, did not deny the allegation but explained that the viral picture was taken within the premises of the hotel where he lodged.
 
While further explaining that he never left his hotel room to go to any polling unit, the Edo APC chairman urged the CRPP and other critics to put their house in order ahead of future elections in the country.