We'll Reject Attempt to Falsify Election Results, Says APC - 29-03-15 3:50pm
Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned against any attempt to tamper with the results of the elections that were concluded
nationwide on Saturday, saying Nigerians have voted peacefully and massively and they know who they have voted for.
In a statement issued on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it has the authentic
results from every polling unit where voting took place on Saturday, and will not accept anything contrary to those signed results.
It decried the dangerous kite now being flown by the PDP, through some of their paid media channels, seeking to appropriate unearned victories across the nation.
''We have always said we will accept the result of any free, fair and transparent elections. We stand by that avowal. However, what we will not accept - and which we are sure Nigerians themselves will reject - is any move to rewrite the results and thwart the will of the people under any guise. We will not accept that.
''We have heard of the desperate moves to cancel the results in areas where the APC has beaten the PDP embarrassingly. Nigerians will definitely not accept that,'' APC said.
The party said it is aware of the ongoing efforts to force Electoral Officers and Presiding Officers in Imo State, some of whom are being
picked up by the military as we write, to rewrite the results of the elections in the state.
''We have the results from every polling unit in Imo State and we know that we have won in over 80 per cent in the presidential election. So there must be no shenanigans,'' it warned.
APC also said the same attempts are being made in Sokoto, Enugu, Ekiti, Ondo, Lagos and other states, wondering why anyone will be seeking to reverse the results that are already settled.
''In the Nsukka Local Government Area, INEC officials, instead of collating results, handed over the exercise to PDP Nsukka zone to
write. They holed up inside ADADA House (a Local Government guest house) to write results and change figures, and were provided with security by the police. APC candidates and agents were chased away. In collaboration with INEC, they refused to let the card readers function and no result sheets came to most polling booths.
The party said result of the Apapa Local Government in Lagos is yet to be announced the which has been ready since yesterday, apparently in a move to manipulate its outcome, warning that voters will not agree with any attempt to steal their votes.
APC Posting Fake Results- PDP Alerts - 29-03-15 11:50pm
…..Says INEC Still Collating Authentic Figures
Chuks Okocha in Abuja
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has charged Nigerians to totally disregard misleading figures being circulated by the APC in the social media as results of the Presidential and National Assembly elections in some polling booths.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh in a statement on Sunday said the figures were “fake and do not represented the true results which are currently being collated by INEC, the only body authorized to release and announce results”.
“The APC in its desperation for power has resorted to posting fake results in the social media in a bid to ambush the electoral commission, mislead the unsuspecting public to believe it is winning, all in furtherance of its grand plot to cause confusion and set the stage for violence when the authentic results are finally released.
“We therefore alert Nigerians to be on their guard and close ranks in resisting the APC’s plot to plunge the nation into chaos and anarchy. Our democracy has come to stay and the will of the people must prevail over and above the parochial ambition of a selfish few.
“Finally, we strongly caution the APC against its acts of desperation and use of dishonest methods including physical attacks against our members and supporters as these pose great threat to our democracy, the unity and stability of our dear nation.
Hiccups: Buhari Rules Out Polls Cancellation...29-03-15 7:50pm
commend INEC's performance
Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Daura, Katsin
The All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari has said that the level of hiccups witnessed during Saturday's presidential election will not be enough to seek for annulment of the polls.
Buhari's assessment of the polls came just as the APC expressed satisfaction with the use of the card reader for voting accreditation, describing it as successful despite some delays.
In its reaction to Saturday's election, the party's National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed said from the reports it has received from its field agents, "it is clear that that the card reader, as a tool to enhance the credibility of elections in the country, has so far proved effective, despite the delays.
''The card reader is a novel tool in our elections and naturally there will be some initial hiccups. We understand that the delays were due to the failure to remove the protective films on the lenses of many card readers, the poor network of some of the sim cards in the card readers and the effect of jamming devices on the card readers," it said.
APC warned against the resort to manual accreditation in some parts of the country, where the card readers are being bypassed, saying it is against the electoral guidelines.
However, while addressing Journalists at his country home in Daura after casting his vote Buhari said though there was some incidents in about five states, it is not enough to necessitate total annulment of the election.
Buhari who came back to the polling unit to cast his vote at about 4.56pm, amidst hundreds of jubilant supporters, said he was impressed by the integrity of the system.
"I also base it on the performance of INEC. If I could recall, I even referred to the submission by the INEC chairman of their activities from the end of the last General election in 2011 till how. I said the document was very good and even INEC said they were ready to conduct this election".
Card Reader Hiccups Avoidable - PDP... 7:41pm
Warns against under-aged voters
Chuks Okocha in Abuja
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says the poor working of the Permanent Voter Card readers in Saturday's Presidential and National Assembly elections across the country could have been avoided if INEC had listened to sound advice from well meaning individuals and organizations including the PDP regarding their deployment without proper testing.
National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Olisa Metuh, said in a statement on Saturday said the last minute resort to manual accreditation by INEC hours into the exercise against its earlier guidelines clearly shows the failure of the system.
"The unfortunate development is a vindication of our earlier position that as good as the idea of card readers is, it was too virgin to be successfully used in a general election without proper testing especially in an environment as ours that is not entirely digitally proficient”, it said.
The party described as a huge national embarrassment the that the card reader had problems in accrediting President Goodluck Jonathan, Governors Jonah Jang, of Plateau, James Ngilari of Adamawa, Isa Yuguda of Buachi among others and called for thorough explanation from INEC.
The PDP equally frowned at reported cases of accreditation of under-aged persons in some states especially in the northern part of the country and called on INEC not only to ensure that such unqualified persons are not allowed to vote but also to prosecute its officials involved in the crime.
The ruling party said it is seriously concerned about the developments given the avowed commitment of the President Goodluck Jonathan-led PDP administration to hitch-free, fair and credible electoral process.
8 killed in Gombe . . . 6:25 PM
Segun Awofadeji in Gombe
No fewer than seven persons were reported to have been killed this Saturday morning when suspected fleeing members of Boko Haram invaded Shole village in Nafada Local Government Area of Gombe State.
Shole is at the border with Yobe State and our correspondent gathered that the villagers all ran out of the village just before the commencement of the general election.
THISDAY checks also revealed that several cars and houses were burnt and that the suspected insurgents invaded the village on motorbikes and Hilux vehicles.
The insurgents were said to have moved to Biri in the same Nafada LGA where they killed one Policeman and ran away with some card readers and some election materials.
They were said to have moved to Dukku where they disrupted election processes as they shot sporadically.
No casualties have been reported yet from Dukku but an aspirant to the Gombe State House of Assembly Usman Mohammad Jafun told our correspondent on phone that the attackers were dressed in military uniforms.
It was also gathered from the Dukku attack that following some resistance from the people in Dukku, one of the attackers was killed while three persons from Dukku sustained injuries.
When contacted over the incident, the Gombe Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Fwaje Atajiri said he was not aware of it but promised to get back to our correspondent after he is through with an urgent meeting he was attending.
However, the election process was reported to have commenced on time in some polling units visited by our correspondent in Gombe, the Gombe State capital as at the time of filing this report. A large turnout was also observed.
A feature observed from most of the polling units is that many youths were stationed at the gates of most of the schools with iron detectors ensuring that people don't get into the polling units with dangerous weapons.
Tambuwal: It’s God that Made this Election Possible Despite Odds . . . 4:45 PM
By Mohammed Aminu in Sokoto
Speaker of the House of Representatives and the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, Saturday said it was only by the grace of God that Nigerians were able to witness another election despite all the efforts to prevent it from holding.
Speaking, shortly after he was screened at the Kofar Ajiya polling unit, Tambuwal described the election as historic and critical in the history of this country.
"Today is very special and critical in the history of Nigeria and for us to witness it is only by the grace of God because effort had been made to stop it from holding," he said.
He commended the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, for insisting that the elections must hold as scheduled in spite of all odds.
He also advised the media against broadcasting or revealing unofficial result, saying it may create a lot of tension in the country.
