PDP Attacks INEC Over Comment On Card Reader

The Peoples Democratic Party on Thursday stated that the Independent National Electoral Commission’s statement on card readers have confirmed the party’s position that the Kogi and Bayelsa state governorship elections and the Kogi West Senatorial election, were all manipulated.

The electoral body in a statement through its National Commission and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Mr Festus Okoye, had claimed that the smart card reader had lost
its efficacy and vibrancy in the electoral process, he further stated that the card reader pose challenges to the electoral process in Nigeria.

PDP in a statement through its spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, stated that the confession by the two INEC commissioners; Okoye and Haruna Mohammed, on Wednesday did not come to the party as a surprise.

Ologbondiyan said, “The confession by the commission vindicates the position of the PDP and a majority of Nigerians that there were manipulations, alterations and circumventing of genuine data captured by the card readers and that actual results transmitted from polling units were tampered with.”

“The admission also brings to light why INEC had no convincing defence at the tribunal in the face of overwhelming discrepancies in the figures it declared in the presidential poll.”

He stated that INEC’s position has not only vindicated the party, it has also placed a huge burden on the Chairman of INEC, Prof Mahmood Yakubu.

Ologbondiyan noted that it is unfortunate that the commission is just realising that the card readers have lost vibrancy after they had been used to manipulate voting processes.

He said, “The INEC Chairman should accept his failures and vacate office without further delay. This is because there is no way Nigerians can continue to repose confidence in the commission under his watch.”

“Of course, not under an electoral commission that condones the invasion of polling units, suppression of voters and stuffing of snatched ballot boxes; an INEC that cancels results in places where election held peacefully while announcing fabricated results allocated to its favoured political party as valid votes.”