Rivers Re-Run: Tension As PDP Makes Huge Accusation Against APC
Reports coming in from Rivers state ahead the re-run election indicate that there is tension following an accusation made by the state’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against the All Progressives Congress (APC).According to This Day report, the state’s chapter of the PDP in a statement issued on Monday, December 21, by its media adviser, Jerry Needam, accused the APC of illegally retrieving permanent voters cards (PVCs) from residents in readiness for the incoming re-run gubernatorial election in the state.The state chairman, Felix Obuah, said the party had already alerted relevant security agencies on the alleged move of the APC in order to curb it.
Obuah went further to explain that the APC under the guise of conducting the party’s membership registration in the state had been dispossessing members of the public their PVCs. He urged the state’s security agencies to arrest those involved in the illegal act.
“Mindful of the criminal implication of the act, and the danger it poses to the nations democratic electoral process, the Rivers State chapter of the PDP has called on the police and other security agencies to urgently be on the heels of leaders and members of the APC in the state, who have under the guise of conducting the party’s membership registration in the state unlawfully dispossess members of the public of their PVCs,” he said.
According to him, the party is apprehensive because of its criminal inclination and as it infringes on the fundamental rights of the legitimate owners of the PVCs, adding that the victims have been deprived of their right to choose their leader as well as their personal identities been impersonated, undermined, endangered and abused.
Obuah insisted that he did not only get the reports but went ahead to confirm that APC leaders and members under the pretext of revalidating their membership base, bought PVC’s at the cost of N5,000 in some areas while in some cases forcefully obtained it through intimidation and threat.
The chairman listed the areas seriously affected by this illegal act to include Ogoni local government area, ONELGA, Port Harcourt, Obio-Akpor, Etche, Kalabari, Ahoada East, Ahoada West, Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Oyigbo, among others.
“We are also made to believe that the act of buying PVCs with such amount is an exposition of the APC taking undue advantage of the poverty and the hard economic situation that have ravaged the nation following the insensitivity and apparently lack of vision and focus by the APC administration under President Muhammadu Buhari.
“The PDP views the actions of the APC to have negated the very essence for which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) conceived and produced the cards which contain essential personal details of the individuals and original owners of the respective PVCs, adding that the development was retrogressive, unpatriotic and portends grave danger to the survival of the nations democratic system, and should not be allowed to continue,” he said.
The PDP called on the people to halt giving out their PVC’s to APC’s fraudulent members and agents, no matter the persuasion, inducement, intimidation and threat. The party also called on community leaders to help curb the trend and talk their people against allowing themselves to be used to execute electoral fraud.
“The PDP again appeals to the police and other security agencies to be unbiased and more proactive in their responsibilities in checking all forms of crime, including electoral felony which has characterised the ongoing APC registration exercise in the state,” he added.
Responding to PDP’s accusations, the state publicity secretary of APC, Mr. Chris Finebone, described it as another falsehood from a drowning party. He insisted that the party is carrying out registration and revalidation of its members.
According to him, the exercise became imperative following the decision of some former PDP members to defect to the APC.“I think they (PDP) have no answer to the fact that we are doing revalidation. The PDP in the state is lost about how we are doing the registration of our new members.
“We are doing this exercise based on request. There are a lot of PDP members that are no longer happy with the PDP and they are saying that they want to join us. So, we are using the opportunity to register them and revalidate the members of our members.
“It has nothing to do with the falsehood from the PDP that we are buying PVCs. The PDP is in power and they control the finance, why did they not buy PVCs from the people since they now think it is easy to purchase PVC from anybody,” he said.
Recall that Nigeria’s apex court, the Supreme Court, dismissed the appeal of the Rivers state Governor, Nyesome Wike, on October 27. The petition challenging the election of Wike as the Rivers state governor was filed by Dakuku Peterside, the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The All Progressives Congress in Rivers state in a jubilation spirit praised the court for throwing out the appeal of the embattled governor to declare the sitting of Rivers state Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja as against the law. But, the Rivers state chapter of the PDP described the ruling of the Appeal Court as a gang-up against Governor Wike by the All Progressives Congress-led government.
Obuah went further to explain that the APC under the guise of conducting the party’s membership registration in the state had been dispossessing members of the public their PVCs. He urged the state’s security agencies to arrest those involved in the illegal act.
“Mindful of the criminal implication of the act, and the danger it poses to the nations democratic electoral process, the Rivers State chapter of the PDP has called on the police and other security agencies to urgently be on the heels of leaders and members of the APC in the state, who have under the guise of conducting the party’s membership registration in the state unlawfully dispossess members of the public of their PVCs,” he said.
According to him, the party is apprehensive because of its criminal inclination and as it infringes on the fundamental rights of the legitimate owners of the PVCs, adding that the victims have been deprived of their right to choose their leader as well as their personal identities been impersonated, undermined, endangered and abused.
Obuah insisted that he did not only get the reports but went ahead to confirm that APC leaders and members under the pretext of revalidating their membership base, bought PVC’s at the cost of N5,000 in some areas while in some cases forcefully obtained it through intimidation and threat.
The chairman listed the areas seriously affected by this illegal act to include Ogoni local government area, ONELGA, Port Harcourt, Obio-Akpor, Etche, Kalabari, Ahoada East, Ahoada West, Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Oyigbo, among others.
“We are also made to believe that the act of buying PVCs with such amount is an exposition of the APC taking undue advantage of the poverty and the hard economic situation that have ravaged the nation following the insensitivity and apparently lack of vision and focus by the APC administration under President Muhammadu Buhari.
“The PDP views the actions of the APC to have negated the very essence for which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) conceived and produced the cards which contain essential personal details of the individuals and original owners of the respective PVCs, adding that the development was retrogressive, unpatriotic and portends grave danger to the survival of the nations democratic system, and should not be allowed to continue,” he said.
The PDP called on the people to halt giving out their PVC’s to APC’s fraudulent members and agents, no matter the persuasion, inducement, intimidation and threat. The party also called on community leaders to help curb the trend and talk their people against allowing themselves to be used to execute electoral fraud.
“The PDP again appeals to the police and other security agencies to be unbiased and more proactive in their responsibilities in checking all forms of crime, including electoral felony which has characterised the ongoing APC registration exercise in the state,” he added.
Responding to PDP’s accusations, the state publicity secretary of APC, Mr. Chris Finebone, described it as another falsehood from a drowning party. He insisted that the party is carrying out registration and revalidation of its members.
According to him, the exercise became imperative following the decision of some former PDP members to defect to the APC.“I think they (PDP) have no answer to the fact that we are doing revalidation. The PDP in the state is lost about how we are doing the registration of our new members.
“We are doing this exercise based on request. There are a lot of PDP members that are no longer happy with the PDP and they are saying that they want to join us. So, we are using the opportunity to register them and revalidate the members of our members.
“It has nothing to do with the falsehood from the PDP that we are buying PVCs. The PDP is in power and they control the finance, why did they not buy PVCs from the people since they now think it is easy to purchase PVC from anybody,” he said.
Recall that Nigeria’s apex court, the Supreme Court, dismissed the appeal of the Rivers state Governor, Nyesome Wike, on October 27. The petition challenging the election of Wike as the Rivers state governor was filed by Dakuku Peterside, the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The All Progressives Congress in Rivers state in a jubilation spirit praised the court for throwing out the appeal of the embattled governor to declare the sitting of Rivers state Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja as against the law. But, the Rivers state chapter of the PDP described the ruling of the Appeal Court as a gang-up against Governor Wike by the All Progressives Congress-led government.
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