Intersociety in a statement jointly signed by its Board Chairman, Emeka Umeagbalasi; Head of Democracy and Good Governance Program, Chinwe Umeche and Head of Campaign and Publicity Department, Chidinma Udegbunam, on Sunday said that Agwu is “incurably unfit” to continue as Anambra Resident Electoral Commissioner.
A civic group, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), has accused the Anambra State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr Elizabeth Agwu and Festus Okoye, the National Commissioner for Voter Education/National Commissioner in charge of Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi states, of jointly disenfranchising thousands of Nigerians in Anambra State in the presidential and legislative elections.
Intersociety in a statement jointly signed by its Board Chairman, Emeka Umeagbalasi; Head of Democracy and Good Governance Program, Chinwe Umeche and Head of Campaign and Publicity Department, Chidinma Udegbunam, on Sunday said that Agwu is “incurably unfit” to continue as Anambra Resident Electoral Commissioner.
The group said that out of every 500 eligible voters that came out to vote in a polling unit, 200 could not vote.
Calling for a compulsory comprehensive review of voting in the state’s 4,608 polling units, the group said Okoye and Agwu should be held responsible for “massive” and “widespread election day disenfranchisement” of teeming voters in the state.
“The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) strongly holds that Mr. Festus Okoye Esquire (INEC National Commissioner for Voter Education/National Commissioner in charge of Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi) and Dr Elizabeth Agwu (Resident Electoral Commissioner for Anambra) should jointly and inescapably be held responsible for massive and widespread Election Day disenfranchisement of teeming voters in Anambra State who defied all odds to make themselves available at the State’s 4,608 polling units to conscientiously vote candidates of their choice in the Presidential and the National Assembly Elections of Sat, 25th Feb 2023.
“Despite the unprecedented number of voters that turned out; the first of its kind since the 1993’s Prof Humphrey Nwosu’s ‘Option A4’ voting pattern, the teeming Anambra voters were disappointed, degraded, humiliated and ostracized by INEC under the above-named two top electoral officials.
“This is to the extent that out of every 500 eligible voters that made it to a polling unit, 200, if not more could not cast their votes; likewise 150 out of every 300 in a polling unit with average PVC-voting numerical strength. The duo of Festus Okoye Esquire and Dr Mrs. Elizabeth Agwu also made sure that elections did not take place in hundreds of polling units, if not more across the state, especially in secured urban areas,” part of the statement read.
The civic group noted that elections were also speedily and flimsily put off by INEC in some remote parts of Ogbaru, Aguata, Nnewi South, Ihiala and other parts of the state, using “insecurity” as a cover.
“In secured urban areas like Nkutaku and ‘Kara’ under Ogbaru and some parts of Awada under Idemmili North, etc., elections did not take place; whereby, voting materials were dumped and INEC staffers disappeared in some of them.
“In most parts of the state where elections were belatedly held, gross late arrival of voting materials and INEC officials dragged the voting into the late evening and in the end, shut out and stopped hundreds of thousands of voters, if not over a million from voting.
“Across Anambra State in particular and South-East and Delta State in general, the voter turnout witnessed was unprecedented, to the extent that several hundreds were found in each polling unit and thousands in the voting arena with five polling units. Yet, in the end, it was discovered that 40% did not vote and ended up going home frustrated and unhappy without voting.
“In all these, Intersociety found Festus Okoye Esquire in his capacity as INEC National Commissioner for Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi to be vicariously liable while Dr Mrs. Elizabeth Agwu in her capacity as Anambra State Resident Electoral Commissioner was directly liable and, therefore, incurably unfit to continue as Anambra REC.
“This is more so when the new Anambra REC, prior to her senatorial confirmation back in October 2022, was publicly accused by activists and critics of having a minus in her integrity and recommended as REC by a partisan third party.”
Intersociety recalled that it had raised an alarm on Friday evening, less than 24 hours before the presidential and National Assembly elections, informing Nigerians that there were going to be substantial delays in the commencement of Saturday polls in many parts of the state with a high possibility of the polls not holding in some, if not several parts.
“Intersociety’s alarm was as a result of credible intelligence obtained, indicating eleventh hour deliberate and controversial cancellation of posting of INEC officials including SPOs, POs and APOs to their LGAs’ areas of assignment and dying minute posting of new ones; leading to their late arrival at their LGAs duty posts and grossly belated sorting of voting materials before being conveyed to polling units.
“More confusion ensued when they belatedly arrived at their duty posts where discovery of duplication and missing names was made; in addition to the discovery that some of the newly posted SPOs, POs and APOs know little or nothing about BVAS Technology, etc. Intersociety also caused an open letter to be written to the duo of REC Agwu and National Commissioner Okoye, dated the afternoon of Saturday, 25th Feb 2023, bringing their urgent attention to the above highlighted and demanding five hours extension of the polls.
“Yet, despite the extension momentarily granted, the INEC was unable to contain the mammoth crowd of voters turnout, owing to its deliberate delays for the purpose of its Election Day massive voters’ disenfranchisement game plan.”