Imo Bye-Election: 100 INEC Staff Abducted, Forced To Thumbprint – REC

Hundreds of ad-hoc staff of the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) in Saturday’s Imo by-election
for Ngor Okpala State Constituency have been abducted,
and taken to an unknown destination were they were
forced to thumbprint on the ballot papers.
The INEC Imo state Resident Electoral Commissioner
(REC), Professor Chukwuemeka Ezeonu, disclosed this
Sunday while briefing newsmen on the happenings around
the bye-election.
The REC warned that those ballot papers from the
abducted INEC ad-hoc staff, would not be accepted by the
NEC.
He said: “We have received the report of violence of
election and disruption of polls on some polling units and
attacks on our personnel.”
He said that so far no casualty has been reported.
He said: “Security men have been up and doing to rescue
some of our staff trapped in the violence. We remain
grateful to them and pray for them to succeed in the work
they are doing.
“We have noticed with great worries an abduction of some
of our Ad-hoc staff with the election materials towards
the end of the polls. While the earlier violence started with
the snatching of election materials it ended with the
abduction of our staff, ballot papers and materials. Some
of our abducted Adhoc staff were blindfolded and taken
to an unknown destination where they were compelled to
thump print the ballot papers.”
The REC reassured the general public that the results
manufactured from unknown places will not be collected.
The number of votes cast must be tallied with the number
of accredited votes.
Meanwhile the National Secretary of the People’s
Democratic Party Senator Samuel Anyanwu has condemns
the abduction Of INEC Staff and stealing of sensitive
materials.
Anyanwu described as despicable and fraudulent the
hijacking of INEC sensitive materials by political thugs
suspected to be loyal to the ruling All Progressives
Congress (APC).
He said, “the stealing of the INEC materials came after the
news had gone to the public that the PDP candidate was
leading in virtually all the polling booths and electoral
wards in Ngor Okpala LGA.”
He maintains that for the candidate of the ruling All
Progressives Congress (APC), Blyden Amajirionwu to be
defeated in his own polling booth is a confirmation that
the PDP candidate, Hon Jeff Nwachukwu was truly ahead
of his closest challenger.
Anyanwu therefore calls on the security agencies in the
state to immediately apprehend those behind the stealing
and hijack of the election materials, while appealing to
PDP supporters to remain calm.
The PDP National Scribe added that his party will never
accept anything less than free, fair and credible election,
while commending party faithful for resisting all
intimidations by APC to rig the poll.