The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has debunked rumours making the rounds that it reviewed the over 81,000 votes with which the PDP candidate, Samuel Ortom is leading the APC’s Emmanuel Jime.
INEC’s National Commissioner in charge of Enugu, Anambra and Benue states, Festus Okoye, made this clarification at the commission’s headquarters in Makurdi when he spoke to journalists.
Our correspondent reports that news had filtered in Friday morning that the over 81,000 votes announced in favour of the PDP in the governorship election of March 9 was reviewed downwards to about 2000 following complaints from the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
However, INEC said it was not true saying, “this commission does not act on the basis of speculation.”
Okoye said everything that has been done regarding the governorship election had been in a very transparent manner.
He noted that when the governorship election was declared inconclusive, the state collation and returning officer had given out all the figures relating to the election.
“That returning officer is still in control, he is still in charge and he will have to conclude what he has not concluded. So, I’m not in a position to make a determination based on rumour and I’m not in a position to change any figure and I’m not too sure he is in a position to change any figure relating to issues that are already in the public domain.”
READ ALSO: My Life Under Threat, Benue SDP Guber Candidate Cries Out
Okoye who was flanked by visiting RECs from kwara state, Attahiru Garba and Niger state, Prof. Samuel Egwu as well as Benue REC, Nantewe Yilwatda said the figures were already in the public domain and can’t be tampered with.
He cautioned that rumours and speculations without fact can be harmful to the electoral process and called on the general public to disregard it.
He said elections should be viewed as a normal democratic process and not a do or die affair. “Let us tell people that what is happening on the 23rd of March is not a funeral but an election where people go to determine who is their leader. So we do not want anybody to end up in the cemetery,” he added.
He said Benue people deserved a peaceful election and the INEC, security agencies will ensure that the Benue people got nothing less than a free, fair and credible election.
According to him, sensitive and non sensitive materials have already been deployed to the 23 local government areas for the guber supplementary elections and to 8 constituencies for the state assembly elections.
He however said their only challenge was that of security of the election, election materials, voters, the media, observers, INEC officials and security for the entire state.
While assuring the commitment of the commission to partner with all stakeholders to achieve best and violent free polls, he called on the security agencies to live up to the challenge of providing security for a peaceful and credible election.
