| Monday, April 11, 2011 |
Delta results inconclusive - REC
Emmanuel Addeh, Asaba
More than 24 hours after the conduct of the National Assembly elections in Delta State, the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr. Gabriel Adah, on Sunday evening said he had not received any senatorial results from his returning officers.
The REC who addressed journalists in his office said all the House of Representatives elections held in the state were inconclusive and therefore could not be announced.
Adah added that he would consult with the commission's national headquarters before announcing new dates for places where elections could not take place as a result of violence.
The Independent National Electoral Commission which had earlier shifted elections in three of the six federal constituencies, noted that its officials were prevented from conducting legislative elections in some parts of the state.
In Ndokwa/Ukwani federal constituency, Adah said, elections did not hold in some places.
He explained that after deducting the vote of the highest scoring party, the Democratic Peoples Party, which scored 28,054 from that of the Peoples Democratic Party's 26,433, INEC came to a conclusion that the 10, 216 electorate that did not vote were capable of swaying the results in favour of any of the parties.
The same, he said, obtained in Isoko federal constituency where the PDP had 38,089 as against DPP's 11,649.
He noted that the difference between the DPP and PDP was 26,440, adding that areas with the cancelled results had a voter strength of 28,682.
In Sapele/Ovia/Okpe federal constituency, he noted that the PDP was leading with 26,420, while the DPP had 21,405.
In a related development, the number of casualties in the poll held on Saturday swelled in the state on Sunday following the death of a policeman.
Four youths had earlier been killed in Oghume, a community in Ndokwa West and Otor-Ogor in Ughelli North of the state in the violence that erupted during the poll.
There were also reports of two suspected ballot snatchers who were shot dead by some security men attached to the polling centre in Ogor in Ughelli.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Charles Muka, who confirmed the death of the policeman, described it as regrettable.
The police officer and his colleagues, were attached to secure voting materials and were returning from duty at Ogriagbene town around 8.20pm when their speed boat which was sailing without a marine illuminator crashed into another speedboat from the opposite direction.
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GUARDIAN
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Six killed while attempting to snatch ballot boxes
From Hendrix Oliomogbe, Asaba
THE rescheduled National Assembly Elections was held in Delta State in an atmosphere devoid of rancour in the South Senatorial district but there were cases of violence at Ughelli town and Orogun, Ughelli North in the Central Senatorial district and Oghume, Ndokwa West Council in the North Senatorial district which resulted in the shooting of six persons.
At Ughelli, four persons were reportedly shot dead by the police when some suspected hoodlums attempted to snatch ballot boxes, while in a similar incidence at Orogun two others were shot and wounded by the police.
It was gathered that the suspected thugs who were heavily armed engaged the police in a shootout while attempting to snatch the ballot boxes.
In Asaba, at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) , party supporters besieged the Commission's office over the content of a Hilux van at the premises which turned out to be result sheets for the House of Representatives election.
Following the order by the Resident Election Commissioner, Dr. Gabriel Adah that the booth be opened, six bundles of 500 copy each of Form EC 8A (i) were discovered to the consternation of all, including security agents and reporters.
Both Rev. Gabriel Egoh of National Transformation Party (NTP) and Chief Chike Onukwu of the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP), had insisted that the booth of the van, marked FG 711 VO1 (PRESIDENCY), which arrived the office at about 1am on Saturday be opened to ascertain the authenticity or otherwise of the claim.
The Public Relations Officer, Mr. Chinedu Onyeji explained that the forms were received through Benin airport late last night and they were meant for the postponed House of Representatives elections in Aniocha/Oshimili, Patani/Bomadi and Ethiope federal constituencies.
Some voters were however disenfranchised as they could not find their names in the register at Uzoigwe Primary School Polling Centre in Asaba and other neighbouring communities visited.
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TRIBUNE
Bayelsa: ACN, LP, others call for cancellation of results * Says REC must go
Monday, April 11, 2011
THE Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Bayelsa State, Mr Edwin Nwatalari, on Sunday, came under fire, as opposition parties, including the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the Labour Party (LP), called for his immediate removal, over alleged irregularities recorded during the conduct of the National Assembly election, on Saturday.
Protesting the conduct of the election, members of the opposition parties stormed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) secretariat, submitting that election did not hold in six local government areas of the state.
This is even as they said the results released by INEC, which saw the emergence of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as winner in Kolokuma/Opokuma/Yenagoa Federal constituency was characterised by irregularities.
Protesters, led by the gubernatorial candidate of the ACN, Dr Imoro Kubo and chieftains of the LP, lamented the use of security operatives and ex-militant leaders to intimidate as well as hijack election materials, especially in Southern/Ijaw Local Government Area of the state.
The chairman of the LP, Addo Badou, accused the PDP-led government of using the instrument of office to manipulate votes in the state, adding that the whole essence of having credible election had been defeated.
Calling for the outright cancellation of the result, the protesters said this would be in the best interest of the people of the state, adding that in Ammasoma and some parts of southern Ijaw, the INEC officials took materials to some places without result sheets.
Reacting to the development, the state Commissioner for Information, Mr Nath Egba, described the allegation levelled against government officials as unfortunate and unfounded.
He said that instead of protesting, they should collate their evidence and in readiness for the tribunal that will hear their cases.
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