The Orlu Political Action Committee, OPAC, on Thursday gave the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, 48 hours to cancel the Imo-bye-election, saying failure to do that, INEC would face mass action from the people of the state.
The group gave this warning in a statement to newsmen in Owerri, through the Publicity Secretary, Mr. Nnamdi Maduka.
They argued that the bye-election was rigged and the results written in a hotel room owned by a private individual.
According to OPAC, alleged that “A state constituency bye-election that was supposed to be seamless, peaceful, credible, transparent and hitch-free was then reduced to total warfare. Ballot boxes were wantonly snatched away by APC chieftains aided by truckloads of security operatives and militiamen, ad hoc officials of INEC were massively kidnapped and results are written at private residences of Uzodinma’s agents and in hotel rooms, this is anomie of indescribable proportion.
“We are therefore deeply troubled by the orgy of violence and electoral fraud in Ngor Okpala, and we firmly believe that if that travesty is allowed to stand, the far-reaching implications will be costly and unhealthy for democracy in Nigeria at large.”
“As an Immediate step to remedy the situation, we demand that INEC should outrightly cancel the Ngor Okpala bye-election within forty-eight hours. Failure to do this will be an invitation to outrage and overwhelming action by the people of Imo.
“We call on the Inspector General of Police to immediately arrest and prosecute all the agents, cronies, allies and henchmen of Uzodinma and chieftains of the APC who were caught in the very shameful abductions, shootings, mayhem and electoral fraud that marred the Ngor Okpala bye-election,” the group said.
