By: Felix Ikpotor
As October earlier announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as date for the conclusion of rerun legislative elctions in Rivers State approaches its end, the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the state, has berated the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state and the governor for Nyesom Wike for engineering and promoting insecurity as a strategy to scare INEC from fixing a date for the long-overdue rerun legislative election in the state.
INEC had before now, made it clear that it will not conduct the election unless peace is guaranteed as it is not prepared to risk the life of its officials and the ad-hoc staff to be used for the exercise.
APC in a statement by the media assistant to the party chairman, Eze Chukwuemeka Eze said, “PDP and Wike are aware that they cannot win any election in a peaceful environment, so they have resorted to the promotion of insecurity to ensure that the rerun legislative election in the state is endlessly delayed so that Senator Magnus Abe, Chief Andrew Uchendu, . Hon. Daniel Amachree and other APC candidates does not join their colleagues at the National Assembly to give Nigerians purposeful and visionary leadership direction”.
The party said, “it is sad and regrettable that Wike has made governance in Rivers State a laughable and comic venture where insecurity is not only promoted, sustained, watered but has become a way of life with murderers and gun wielding youths treated like celebrities. A State where outdated criminals are granted amnesty and accorded heroic receptions and treatments all aimed at scaring and intimidating INEC and security organs from performing their statutory roles in the state”.
the party faulted the recent granting of state pardon to about nine criminals who were sentenced to life imprisonment by competent courts of law,having been found guilty of various cases of killings by the governer.
Similar, the party cried out over what it termed yet another violent attack on Ogoniland, which is one of its strongholds.
It said: “Last two nights, we learnt that Wike and his killer gang attacked a community in Khana LGA, killed four people and burnt many houses. Obviously, this act of barbarism is part of Wike and PDP’s strategy of using violence to intimidate INEC to keep postponing the legislative rerun election.”
Rivers APC however, declared its readiness to contest the rerun legislative election at any time and date, even as it appealed to the security agencies to come to the rescue of INEC to enable it conduct the ballot without further delay.
