PDP said this while condemning the reported refusal by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Edo State to grant the party and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, access to the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines and other materials used in the September 21, 2024, Edo State governorship election against the order of court.
Meanwhile, the Edo Election Petition Tribunal, on Monday, granted the PDP and its candidate, Dr Asue Ighodalo request to inspect all election materials used for the Sept. 21 governorship election in the state.
Edo: Ighodalo says “Evil’s temporary victory” cannot destroy truth
The Chairman of the tribunal, Justice W.I. Kpochi granted the order in an exparte motion filed by Ighodalo and the party.
The exparte motion dated Sept. 27 was filed by Rotimi.O. Ogunseso, SAN, with Seun Olusuyi, counsel to the applicants.
The petition and affidavits was sworn to by Osasere Adagbonyin.
In the petition, all the prayers of the petitioners were granted by the tribunal.
Making the allegation of non-compliance in a statement on Monday, the National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, said, “Our Party also alerts the public of how compromised INEC officials used the ploy of waiting for “directives from above” to allegedly allow thugs recruited by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and some unscrupulous police operatives to invade the INEC office in Edo State so as to cause confusion and frustrate the PDP from accessing these sensitive materials.”
“INEC’s refusal to release the materials is in brazen affront of the Order of the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal Holden at Benin City, dated 29th day of September, 2024 which ordered the Commission to grant our Party and candidate “unfettered access to and open up for inspection all electoral documents or any document in the custody of the National Chief Electoral Commissioner or any officer of the Commission/1st Respondent, particularly the Voter Registers, Ballot papers, the BVAS machines, Forms EC25B, EC25B(i) Forms EC40A and Forms EC40C which were utilized for the conduct of the Edo State Governorship election held on the 21st September 2024”.
Meanwhile, the Certified True Copy of the order signed by the Secretary of the tribunal, Mauzu Ibrahim, ordered INEC to produce and make available all the materials used for the election.
The documents listed by the applicants and granted by the tribunal are all forms EC8A, forms EC8B, forms EC8C, forms EC8D, forms EC8E, forms EC25B, forms EC25B(i) used at the election.
Also granted are all forms EC40A, forms EC40C, forms EC40G and EC40G(i) used at the gubernatorial election
The court also ordered INEC to make all the polling unit results , Forms EC8A uploaded to its IREV portal from the poling unit, list of accredited agents of all the political parties that participated in the gubernatorial election.
Others are, voters register for each of the polling units, total number of BVAS machines deployed to the poling units, serial number of each BVAS machines matched against the specific polling units.
Other materials to be inspected included statement and report of the number of accredited voters recorded on and extracted directly from the BVAS machines used at all the polling units for the election.
The tribunal further ordered INEC to produce and make available to the applicants record and list of polling units where election results were not uploaded to INEC IREV portal as at Sept. 22 when the results of the election were announced.
It also directed that record of the posting of INEC adhoc staff for the 4,519 polling units, number of Permanent Voters Cards,( PVCs) collected in each polling units be made available to the applicants.
Speaking to newsmen at INEC office in Benin, Olusegun Jolaawo, SAN, said they were at INEC Office in furtherance of the court order and the applicants’ attempt to get the electoral materials inspected
According to Jolaawo, we came here today in furtherance of the tribunal order we obtained on Sept 29, 2024 and to get materials to fresh up our petition
“Now, when we got here today, we were not able to get audience with the REC but we were able to see the head of legal unit, who told us that they were preparing a schedule for our inspection.
“The risk involved is obvious to everybody, and the time expires on Saturday for us to file our petition and today is Monday, ” he said.
Speaking further, Ologunagba noted that the action of the INEC in Edo State therefore validates reports of criminal connivance of some INEC officials with the APC to obstruct the course of justice and suppress evidence of the manipulation and doctoring of election results which was clearly won by the PDP and its candidate.
He claimed that information available to the PDP indicates that “the heavily compromised INEC officials and the APC are working to alter the data in the BVAS machines, results sheets, ballot papers and other vital information in favour of the defeated APC candidate.”
The statement further read, “It is imperative to draw the attention of Nigerians and the International Community of a pattern by the INEC to continue to present itself as a threat to democracy against its mandate to promote democratic principles of free, fair and credible elections in line with the Constitution and extant electoral laws.
“Nigerians will recall from reports in the public domain since the 2023 elections that INEC has proven to be in active connivance with the APC to manipulate the outcome of every election in favour of the APC in total disregard and contempt to the expressed Will of the people and the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), the Electoral Act, 2022 and INEC Guidelines for elections.
“This manipulative and provocative action by INEC and the APC is already causing apprehensions with the possibility of a breakdown of Law and Order as Nigerians are increasingly getting frustrated with the Commission.
The PDP therefore called on the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu to immediately redeem the image of the Commission by ensuring the immediate release of the BVAS machines, the results sheets, ballot papers and other vital materials used for the election for inspection by our Party and candidate in compliance with the Order of the Tribunal.
“INEC and the APC must know that there is no way the PDP and the people of Edo State will allow the mandate freely given to our Party and candidate at the September 21, 2024 Edo State Governorship to be illegally transferred to the APC which was defeated at the election,”
Credits: NAN/Channels TV
