The People’s Democratic Party, PDP, has warned the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, not to tamper with the mandate of the people of Adamawa State in the ongoing gubernatorial election conducted on Saturday.
The acting Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party, H.E. Sen Adolphus Wabara, on Sunday in a statement observed the disregard to the rule of law by the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Adamawa State, in person of Mr. Hudu Yunusa-Ari, with security officials, and without due process as contained in the INEC guidelines and the Electoral Act, assumed responsibility by declaring results and hurriedly declared a winner in the Adamawa supplementary elections as results collation were still ongoing for 10 LGAs.
According to Wabara, results of the 10 LGAs collated showed that the PDP was still in clear lead over the closest contestant.
He said the open disregard for the rule of law is a pointer to the fact that the Electoral Commission has been compromised from within.
He said Nigerians are expecting INEC to act justly as a neutral entity with respect to the supplementary elections taking place in Adamawa and other states in Nigeria.
He said with the controversies surrounding the general elections, INEC should ensure that the outcome of the supplementary elections was not added to the list of controversial elections conducted by the body.
The statement reads:
“With due respect to the Electoral Act 2022 and the INEC guidelines regarding the 2023 electoral process, Nigerians watched in dismay the display of disregard to the rule of law by the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Adamawa State, in person of Mr. Hudu Yunusa-Ari.
“Accompanied by Security Officials, and without following due process contained in the INEC guidelines and the Electoral Act, the REC took it on himself to assume responsibility for declaring results and hurriedly declared a winner in the Adamawa supplementary elections as results collation were still ongoing for 10 LGAs.
“So far, results from the collated 10 LGAs indicated that the PDP was still in clear lead over the closest contestant. This open disregard for the rule of law is a pointer that the Electoral Commission is compromised from within and Nigerians are expecting INEC to act justly as a neutral entity with respect to the supplementary elections taking place in Adamawa and other states in Nigeria.
“With the plethora of controversies surrounding the general elections so far, we call upon INEC to ensure that the outcome of the supplementary elections is not added to the list of controversial elections conducted by the body.
“We also call upon members of our great party PDP to remain law abiding and calm as we continue to follow developments from the supplementary elections to ensure that the will of the people of Adamawa state is not thwarted by the few who have no regards for the law.
“We appreciate the media, local and international observers as they continue their jobs in ensuring that we have a Nigeria that is governed by true democratic tenets.”
