The shambolic victory of Governor Hope Uzodinma in the off-cycle shenanigan called governorship election in Imo State goes to birth democratic junta that brazenly inflated the votes with the connivance of the electoral umpire, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC
By Miracle Egbo
The television footage of what transpired at the collation centre of the governorship election in Imo State where the hefty Labour Party agent in the shambolic election was reduced to heap of flesh on the floor in full glare of the Independent National Election Commission, INEC and security operatives of various hues and colours, for attempting to question the authenticity of the collation process exposed the desperation of Governor Hope Uzodinma to rule Imo State for the second term by hook or crook. The spanking of the LP agent by the thugs allegedly loyal to the Imo State government was aptly the graphic details of what happened at the poll in the state on November 11, 2023 at the various pulling units scattered all over 27 local council areas in the state that had donned the toga of the birth place of democratic junta.
In Ahiazu Mbaise Local Council, Pulling Unit 007, INEC told the electorate that that the number of accredited voters was 74, curiously when the results from the pulling units were announced, the electoral umpire was said to have resurrected ghost voters to explain the 560 votes allotted Governor Uzodinma to win in the pulling unit. What happened in this pulling unit, according to investigation might have found expression in other results of pulling units that earned Governor Uzodinma the victory. It was gathered that in most of the local government areas, INEC was not able to conduct election but declared bogus results in local government areas that never witnessed any election.
The outcome of the November 11, 2023 governorship election in Imo State could have found expression in the forewarning of the opposition parties that the state Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state is sister to the Deputy National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC. The opposition parties equally forewarned that security operatives in the state have been compromised, and if nothing was done in this regard, the outcome of the results of the election would create democratic junta which would latter spiral all over the 36 states of the Federation because there are no consequences.
Political pundits in many fora have described the governorship election in Imo as tapestry of travesty of desecration of the tenets of democratic norms. According to them, the victory of Governor Uzodinma is clear indication that the mandate of the electorate does not matter during election. Mrs. Nma Odi, a reputable human right activists and a leading voice in the civil society groups described the Imo election as shambolic. According to her, INEC has completed its desecration thereby making it possible for the electorate to shun future elections in the country because whatever mandate they give would not be respected. Mrs. Odi said that INEC should hide its head in shame because billions of naira of tax payers’ moneys have just been wasted on a sham called election.
“I can assure you that INEC resurrected ghost in Imo State and forced them to vote for its preferred candidate in the just concluded election. This is even worse when compared to how Supreme Court foisted him in the state for his first tenure in the office”, observed Mrs. Odi during an interaction with journalist in Abuja.
In the same vein, opposition Lawmakers in the state led by Honourable Ikenga Ugochinyere said that the results declared by INEC in the state is laughable because in almost half of the local council areas in the state, election never happened but the electoral umpire declared results in those local council area against its own guideline of not declaring results in places where election did not happen.
Ugochinyere in volumes of INEC documents made public averred that the results declared after election were not the true reflection of what happened in Imo on November 11, 2023. According to him, the voters who managed to come out were coerced to vote for Uzodinma on the full glare of the security operatives without consequences. Thugs loyal to the state government had a field day in preventing voters to choose the candidate of their choice in the election that has been described in many quarters as the worst since 1999.
The opposition Lawmakers in the state has vehemently rejected the results of the election as announced by INEC, insisting that the outcome of the election should be cancelled without delay and new election conducted with immediate effect to stop the erosion of the little credibility left for the electoral umpire in the country. The Lawmakers warned that ignoring the call for the cancellation of the whole exercise in the state is a recipe for anarchy in future elections in the country.
