Supporters of Labour Party have stormed the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Imo State.
The supporters of the party led a protest to the INEC office to stand against the results of the just concluded Nov. 11 Governorship elections.
The party members and loyalists stormed the office chanting songs like, “INEC is supposed not be unbiased”, “INEC, Justice delayed is Justice denied”, “INEC release CTC” “INEC should be independent”
The protest is connected to the alleged refusal of the electoral umpire, INEC to release the official results master-sheet (CTC) to its candidate, Senator Athan Achonu.
The LP state chairman, Callistus Ihejiagwa, had led the party faithfuls and loyalists to the INEC headquarters expressing their displeasure over their conduct in the elections.
Ihejiagwa, addressing newsmen said the party and its candidate had been waiting for 9 days to receive the official documents to file their petition.
He highlighted an incident where he was assaulted during the collation of election results by individuals linked to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
His words:
“The first time I came here was on the evening of November 11, I was hale and hearty, strong, and I came with my two legs.
But I was beaten mercilessly and thrown outside from inside the collation room right in the presence of the State Commissioner of Police, two federal commissioners of INEC, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Prof Sylvia Agu, Heads of Security Chiefs in the state, by thugs brought in by a top aide of Governor Uzodimma, because I had demanded that the right thing should be done.
“Today I am here again in a wheelchair rising from the severe assault by the APC thugs on the evening of November 11 which had affected my spinal cord, demanding from the INEC to give us the certified true copy of the fake results they used in declaring Senator Hope Uzodimma and they have refused – nine days after the election.
“The National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof Mahmoud Yakubu, the federal Commission representing the South East, Ken Ukaogu and the State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Prof Sylvia Agu have refused to release the CTC after 9 days.
“They mocked Labour Party inside the collation hall that we should go to court. The Returning Officer, Prof Abayomi Fasina, had bluntly told us to go to court. We have applied for the CTC so that we can go to court but the INEC is delaying which is deliberate; just to frustrate us.
“We have come here this afternoon so that the entire world will hear our voice that the INEC is frustrating us, using technical reasons that the delay from is one office or the other.”
However, Ben-Opara Emmanuella, a representative from INEC, revealed that the commission was working on the application and ready to reveal the cost of its release.
