Declaring the Centre open on Sunday afternoon, the INEC boss said only the Commission is empowered to release election results.
By Emma Ogbuehi
As criticisms continued to mount over the conduct of yesterday’s elections, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmoud Yakubu, on Sunday declared open the National Collation Centre for Presidential and National Assembly elections held nationwide on Saturday, February 23, 2023.
Declaring the Centre open on Sunday afternoon at the International Conference Centre (ICC), Abuja hours after the elections commenced and concluded in some polling units, the INEC boss said only the Commission is empowered to release election results.
He also acknowledged some of the challenges witnessed in some states and said the Commission will look into all the cases.
Yakubu explained that the collation process is a four-step approach and every of the proceeding will be held in the open.
The presidential and NASS elections were held simultaneously across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory on Saturday.
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Collation of results was still at various stages, some at the registration areas, federal constituency, senatorial district and local government collation centres.
Meanwhile, Nigerians who are dissatisfied with the performance of INEC have continued to speak up in condemnation of the electoral umpire.
Emmanuel Ogebe, an international human rights lawyer and diaspora monitor of the polls likened what transpired to the kidnap of a nation.
Calling the disenfranchisement of many Nigerians “INEC’S ‘vote swop’ scandal,” Ogebe called on INEC to set the captive presidential results free without any harm.
“Just like the CBN’s orchestrated currency swop fiasco where Nigerians were duped into surrendering their old notes for new that never came, INEC, another pseudo independent Federal agency, has shortchanged Nigerians by collecting their votes but failing to give us results and a desired new order,” Ogebe wrote in a terse three-paragraph statement.
“This is a willful and disgraceful hijack of an almost 100 million electorate and an additional 100 million affected citizens playing out before the world.
“I call on INEC to set the captive presidential results free without any harm. Nigerians will not be extorted or intimidated.”