The Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday chided governor Chibuike Amaechi for what the party called ”his reprehensible conduct during the course of March 28, 2015 Presidential/National Assembly elections.
It also condemned ”his subsequent unguarded and irresponsible comments” on same, saying it was an understandable show of frustration.
The governor had , out of curiosity, directed APC members to shun voting , giving his reason as the refusal of some presiding officers to show him the result sheets and non availability of voting materials while other party officials complained of collusion among INEC officials, the security agents and PDP to disenfranchise APC members.
In a press statement singed by the party’s Deputy Chairman, Media and Publicity Committee, Campaign Organisation, Prince Shedrack Akolokwu and Opubo Daminbo, Secretary after addressing the press in Port Harcourt, the party stated that governor Amaechi was only in his polling unit 14 ward 8 ,Ubima , his village in the Ikwerre Local government Area as a voter and not as INEC officer or any other electoral body.
It stated that, that being the case,he had no right to demand from the presiding officer the result sheet which is a sensitive voting material, pointing out that there was no provision in the Electoral Act that gives the governor any right to demand the result sheet when he knew it would not by law, be given to him.
”The subsequent directive by Amaechi to his APC members to demand for the result sheets all over the state was aimed purely at disrupting of an election which he knew he would lose. He just played to the gallery to masquerade his disgrace”, the party said, adding however that the electorate ignored him and went ahead to massively exercise their franchise.
”Elections were conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) in all the 4,442 polling units in the 319 electoral wards in Rivers State on Saturday, March 28, 2015. Governor Amaechi ‘s account showed that he arrived his polling unit for accreditation and voting. On arrival, he met , saw electoral officials on duty and his kinsmen who were already there for accreditation and voting. The mere fact that he stormed out like a spoilt child because his unlawful request was not obliged by INEC officials did not prevent law abiding citizens from performing their civic duty to vote. This gives a lie to all the ranting of the governor,” the party further explained.
The party expressed delight at the massive turnout of voters on the election day, saying, ”We salute the voters in Rivers State for their massive turnout and urge them to come out likewise on April 11, 2015 to vote for the PDP and all its candidates.”
It commended the UN, AU, ECOWAS and the EU observers among others, for their objective analysis of the electoral exercise in Rivers state.
