State Election Reports

[busanga]

Originally Posted by What?

Ascribing motives to others is a very dicey issue. Often we will assume that others are motivated by the same rationale as ourselves.

Speaking of motives, if I wanted to settle scores, ethnic, economic, social, political or otherwise I do not need to hide under the banner of democracy to do so.

My car has been broken into a few times, I did not burn down the neighborhood it occured in. The issue was fixing by car and avoiding a re-occurence. In three past elections, we have burnt our property(yes State property is my property too!) and killed people, yet rigging is still a problem because there are enough new election entrepreneurs to fill the vacuum. Burning down the street and physical violence will not protect my car in other neighborhoods, or from different thieves.

Put down your anger and think about it.

Save me all the compromised talk and say Amen to the prayer. If you cant then u are not man enough.

[Nonyellum]

Culled from the Nigerian Tribube:

hoodlums arrested in Warri, moved to Abuja
Sylvester Idowu, Warri - 17.04.2007

Seventeen suspected political thugs arrested during last Saturday Governorship and House of Assembly elections in Delta State, have been moved to the Police headquarters in Abuja.


Nigerian Tribune gathered that the suspected political thugs were taken from the state Police Command’s headquarters in Asaba yesterday amidst tight security to Abuja, in line with an earlier directive by the Inspector General of Police.


Sources disclosed that security agents were monitoring the entire state to curtail, any attempt to unleash violence in the state, based on security reports that some opposition politicians were plotting to unleash mayhem.


Armed soldiers and mobile police men were seen patrolling major streets in Abraka, Ughelli, Effurun and some parts of Warri yesterday afternoon. Armoured tanks were also rolled out as warning signal to troublemakers in Warri, particularly those in the volatile Uvwie Local Government Area.

The Public Relations Officer, Joint Task Force (JTF), Major Nwachukwu Onyema told Nigerian Tribune that armed soldiers on Sunday succeeded in dislodging armed miscreants that were causing havoc along Abraka- Warri road.


He said that there was peace in Abraka, where the governorship candidate of the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP), Chief Great Ogboru hails from, as soldiers deployed to the area overwhelmed the hoodlums.
http://www.tribune.com.ng/17042007/news/news5.html----------------------------------------------------

OBJoke and his criminal govt gang label protesters of this fraudulent election hoodlums and militants.

The scandalous Nigerian Army is ACTIVELY employed to intimidate the people into submission, silence dissent and foist an unpopular condidate on the populace.


What a farce.

[Abraxas]

Hi, folks!

Please check the website of the European Union (EU) Election Observation Mission to Nigeria (2007) for an insight into the views of the "international community" on the on-going elections in Nigeria.

Click here for the press release of the EU Election Observation Mission, urging "significant improvements in advance of federal elections on Saturday, 21 April 2007.

Muchas gracias.

Don Juan-Carlos ABRAXAS (III)

[Abraxas]

Domestic Observers Reject Results of 10 States

Source: oyibosonline.com

A group of domestic observers has rejected the results of the gubernatorial elections in ten states, which were released by the Indepe-ndent National Electoral Commission (INEC), saying that the conduct of the elections was anything but free and fair.
The states are Anambra, Adamawa, Delta, Edo, Enugu, Kogi, Nasarawa, Ogun, Ondo and Rivers.
In a preliminary report released yesterday at a press conference in Abuja, the group cited various irregularities in the conduct including hoarding of results sheets by INEC, lack of secrecy in balloting, underage voting, non inclusion of pictures and/or names of candidates on the ballot paper, alleged partisanship of INEC officials, snatching of ballot boxes and papers, intimidation of voters and high number of deaths during the exercise.

The group, which comprised the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), Labour Monitoring Team, Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), Alliance for Credible Elections (ACE), Muslim League for Accountability (MULAC), Women Environmental Pro-gramme (WEP),and Feder-ation of Muslim Women Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN), decried the cancellation of the Imo State governorship election.

Speaking on behalf of the group, Innocent Chukwuma, chairman of the TMG, questioned INEC’s rationale for the cancellation, arguing that if violence trailed the governorship election, it must have affected the state house of assembly whose results were upheld by INEC as well. The group also questioned why INEC did not cancel the results of other states like Edo, Ondo and others, where violence was also recorded.

The group again put a question mark on Delta state results because the INEC headquarters announced PDP as the winner when its Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state said the results was still being collated.

The group condemned alleged attacks on observers in certain parts of the country, simply because they happened to be at the points where negotiations were allegedly being made with INEC officials to take away ballot boxes, and called for adequate protection at all polling booths.

Deploring INEC's preparations for the elections, the group accused INEC of disenfranchising thousands of voters who could not find their names on the voters’ register and others who could not vote because names/or photographs of their preferred candidates were not on the ballot.

The group which said it deployed a total of 60,000 observers throughout the country disclosed that two of its observers, Ellah and Obinna, were abducted but later released in Abia State, and another was wounded seriously in Bauchi while a third was shot in Benue.

[Chinkata]

My brother, it is not only those ten states oh. See Ekiti is missing from their list. Richard Dowden was reporting in yesterday's (London) Independent reported:

"That evening, I went to the centre were the results were to be checked. A power cut had left it in darkness but officials were counting by the pale light of mobile phones. Reports came in from all over the state of ballot box thefts and PDP intimidation of voters. But on the votes counted, Mr Fayemi was clearly in the lead, beating his rival two to one in two wards. The electoral commissioner in charge of the centre, however, was closeted in his office with some Big Men including President Obasanjo's adviser on political affairs. The PDP candidate, Olusegun Oni, was declared the winner yesterday morning."


And Abia state was also rigged, never mind that it is being reported that an 'opposition' party that won it. See below further cries over the injustice in that case.



2007 GENERAL ELECTIONS: CALL FOR IMMEDIATE

Last View on Tue 17th April, 2007
Last Modified on Mon 16th April, 2007 3:29:43 am
Author: Admin Sahara

April 15, 2007


As part of its efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s democracy, the Human Rights, Justice and Peace Foundation monitored the April 14, 2007, governorship and state house of assembly elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abia State.


In the course of its monitor, the HRJPF observed that massive riggings and frauds marred the elections.

In a manner reminiscent of the 2003 general elections, the state government through the 17 local government transition committees sponsored armed militias drawn mainly from the newly reconstituted Bakassi boys, student cultists and motor park touts led by a notorious bandit popularly known as Escapee to:
- Snatch boxes elections materials;
- kill anybody or group of people perceived to constitute obstacles to the victorious emergence of the candidates of the PPA at the polls. One of the unfortunate victims of this lust for power was Mr. Okorukwu, a native of Idima Abam and supporter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He was killed at Ndi-Ojiugwo Community, Ohafor Ward II, Arochukwu Local Government Area, Abia State by gun wielding agents of the PPA. Information available to the HRJPF revealed that, to sweep under the carpet this heinous crime, money has exchanged hands between the state government and the state police command. The police has perfected plans to label the deceased an armed robber;
- intimidate and overawe the Abia electorates into voting for candidates of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA); and- facilitate the altering of results in favour of candidates of the PPA in Abia State through the connivance of INEC officials.

Recall that the HRJPF had in March 2007 raised alarm on the reconstitution of a terrorist gang by Governor Kalu to facilitate the electoral victories of the candidates of PPA for Abia State in the April polls through barbaric means. But rather than deploy heavily armed security agents to dislodge them, the Federal Government has remained insensitive to it.

Sadly, the result of this daylight robbery of the mandate of the suffering and dying people of Abia is the declaration of the Gubernatorial Candidate of the PPA, Chief T. A. Orji, aka Thief After Orji (Uzor Kalu) by the INEC, winner of the April 14 poll, despite that he is being detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for assisting rogue governor Kalu in looting the resources of the state.

Against this backdrop, the HRJPF calls on the INEC to cancel the results of the April 14 polls in Abia State. But if the INEC fails to do so, the HRJPF shall not hesitate to mobilize the Abia people for a mass action to ventilate their grievances.

Be warned!

Comrade Chidi Nwosu
President

[Abraxas]

Hi, folks!

Observe that my very good enemy, Mr. Paul ADUJIE Esq., [the New York City-based IT guru, and praise-singing consultant for Aso Rock Villa in cyberspace, alias I Love Nigeria (pass Obasanjo)] has been uncharacteristically quiet since the close of the sham elections on 4-14.

Maybe he is re-strategising, as he awaits feedback from Uncle Commodore Bode George, Baba General (I Dey Kampe) Olusegun Obasanjo (GCFR), and Elder Colonel Senator Dr. Ahmadu (Able Chair) Alli (GCON).

Please come out of your spider hole, Mr. I Love Nigeria (pass Obasanjo). All is forgiven, dear Paul (of ancient Damascus!)

Muchas gracias.

Don Juan-Carlos ABRAXAS (III)

[Mikky jaga]

With all respect, I think what is happening in Nigeria today is so grave that it does not call for patronising chatter of OBJ praise singers.

Men, women and children are dying in the streets. Houses and properties worth millions of Naira are being burnt down. Next Saturday portends worse things than what we already see because the perpetrators of last election rigging will not repent of their evil doings. My advice: If you have your brother or relations as INEC officials during next Saturday elections, please advise him/her to forget it for his/her life's sake. People are likely to vent their spleen on these officials especially in the volatile areas.

The earlier these Obasanjo forever crooners kept silent, the better for everyone of us.

[Anike]

Ilorin is not so peaceful afterall. Protestants took to the streets today, protesting another tenure of Bukola Saraki. It's about time too.

[Nonyellum]

I waited until today to speak to my folks in Asaba. Some had gone to the village but my mom was in Asaba. I just learnt today that she was unable to vote, just like her neighbours. Despite the restriction on movement, they still could not find a polling station despite driving, walking for miles and many got sick in the process.

My sisters had gone to the village for a burial. There was no voting there either or the surrounding villages, clans, numbering 25 which make up my LGA. She does not know where the numbers INEC is brandishing came from, the people did not vote. And I'm sure this scenerio was replicated all over the creeks, villages in Delta State

The mood in Asaba is a very sombre one, people are very angry at the continous rape and imposition of undesirables on their lives. How much longer can this go on?

The PDP Chairman in Delta, Mr. Ogidi went as far as edvocating the arrest of the opposition Governorship candidate, Chief Great - the concensus candidate. This man won the lection against criminal Ibori in the last dispensation but was schemed out. They're at it again, criminal collusion of INEC AND PDP in DELTA State to deny people their constitutional and human rights.

The people are surrounded by the Nigerian Army and cannot freely excercise theise rights and right of assembly for fear of being mowed down by these brutes. They also have to contend with the "shoot on sight" orders barked out by Ehindero.

This intimidation and people abuse is unacceptable. We do not have the likes of Nnamani to speak on our behalf, but we refuse to accept this any longer. If violence and irregularities are cogent reasons for cancelling Enugu polls, ditto Delta State polls for similar infractions.

[Nonyellum]

Culled from the Vanguard

WARRI—ONE of the key movers of the Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders Forum of Delta State, Senator Fred Brume who was arrested in the early hours of Sunday by a combined team of State Security Service (SSS) operatives, soldiers and policemen and whisked away from his residence to Asaba, the state capital, has been released.

Senator Brume who spoke to Vanguard on phone, yesterday, confirmed that he had been released, saying: “I want you (Vanguard) to help tell the world what these evil men planned against me. Elections did not take place in my area, Udu and other parts of the state and they want me to keep quiet without resisting their evil plot”.

He said that a combined team of SSS men, soldiers and policemen invaded his house in the night and took him away at about 3.00 am and they got to Asaba at about 6.00 am, saying that he was not told his offence by his captors until the Director of SSS told him in Asaba that he was arrested for allegedly sponsoring the kidnapping of expatriates in the Niger-Delta by militants.

Senator Brume said he was told that the instruction was to take him to Abuja but it was obvious to them that the allegation that militants were meeting in his house was a fabrication and they had to release him because the intention in the first instance was to demobilize and take him out of sight for the PDP to perfect its rigging of the polls in his area.

His words: “In Udu, we knew about the plans the PDP had, they planned to deny and prevent the people from voting. We took actions to prevent them. In some cases, they did all sort of things like coming in camouflage military uniforms to spray paralyzing gas at the people and carrying away the ballot boxes”.
“They told me that I am another Asari-Dokubo and it was in my compound that the hostage takers meet to plot their operations.

In Delta State, this is what those who dare against all odds, take a stand against the evil behemoth, PDP rigging machine are subjected to, intimidation, blakmail, hijacking, very, very crude and criminal bent.

Obasanjo and his criminal enablers, you people should fear God. These are humans you're dealing with not animals. No condition is permanent, never forget that.