Former House of Representatives Deputy Speaker, Chibudom Nwuche, has joined the outcry against plans by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to create more polling units in the North than in the South.
He asked INEC Chairman, Attahiru Jega, to resign or allocate equal numbers of units to the North and South for the vote in 2015.
He implored Jega not to take a section of the country for a ride.
“Does he think that we are all fools? He should be called to order to revisit his ideas and put things in order before it is too late,” he stressed in an exclusive interview with TheNiche in Abuja.
Nwuche, a member of the new PDP National Integration Committee, advised the Presidency to caution Jega or send him packing.
“Sacking him will pose no danger because he has left no good legacy for the system. There is nothing special, so somebody else can as well take over and conduct a credible election, so Jega can now go.”
Jega has come under heavy criticism in recent days because of the proposal, with barbs shot at him by individuals and groups such as Afenifere, South East governors, Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly (SNPA), and South South Media Professionals Forum (SSMPF).
Former Anambra State Governor, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, alleged that Jega has been armed with a pro-Northern script to rig the 2015 presidential election against President Goodluck Jonathan, a Southerner, in favour of a Northern candidate.
“How can the North West have over 8,000 new polling units and the entire South East gets a mere 1,000 units, the same figure for Zamfara and the FCT (Federal Capital Territory). That is impossible,” he stated.
The SNPA questioned the rationale behind increasing polling units when the number of registered voters has reduced from 70 million to 57 million.
It described the plan “as a script crafted for Jega to implement, in continuation of the well-known hegemonic agenda, by the enemies of our hard-won democracy.”
The SSMPF warned Jega to exercise caution over the distribution of new polling units, which it alleged showed bias and prejudice against the South, “a wicked plan to empower a particular region by all means crooked against the South.”
But Jega has stood his ground that “there is no sectional or parochial agenda in this decision and there will never be any such agenda under this commission.
“They know my antecedents. I am not a religious jingoist. It is only those who do not want progress, who are accusing us. Nigeria must move forward. We must not allow our fear to imprison us.”