CPC, APGA, others blame electoral malpractice on INEC
BY SUZAN EDEH
Bauchi—The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, was Sunday blamed for allegedly participating in the rigging of the April 2011 general elections in the country.
Political parties made the allegation during a two-day public hearing by the INEC Registration and Election Review Committee on the 2011 election.
In their separate submissions to the committee, political parties in attendance excluding PDP and ANPP faulted INEC for almost all the various forms of riggings witnessed during the elections.
Ali Dogara of the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, faulted INEC officials for accepting to register under-aged children during the registration exercise which “paved way for the rigging process,” saying that in some polling units ballot papers were found inside ballot boxes already “thump-printed to favour a particular party.’’
He said, “it is very unfortunate that despite the promises by the commission that it would punish any of its officials found to have participated in election rigging or malpractices, no serious measures was taken against those offenders (that registered under-aged children for the election), which would have served as deterrent to others.
“Some states imposed unnecessary curfew, which was aimed at intimidating voters and the opposition parties, so that the ruling People’s Democratic Party, PDP, will be able to rig the election”.
Also, the Bauchi State APGA Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Danjuma faulted INEC for the late arrival of election materials, alleging that most of the ad-hoc staff used by INEC were not properly trained on how to operate computers that resulted to a lot of people not being registered for the election.
Danjuma said INEC officials contributed in hoarding ballot papers during elections, citing an example of a polling unit in Bauchi State that had 530 voters but only 200 ballot papers were made available for the election even as according to him, the total 530 votes were fully signed as having been counted by the Presiding Officer.
APGA called on INEC to use electronic voting machine in subsequent elections as the only way to minimize rigging in the country.
Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of the Panel, Prof Abdulhamid Ujo said they were in Bauchi State to receive submission from stakeholders from the North East zone on how to ensure a successful election in the country in the future, adding that his committee will make wise recommendation to INEC considering that their committee was an independent one.
“I do not expect INEC to dump our report as the committee consist of experts, so it is not going to be business as usual. We want to make an in-depth recommendation that will pave way for successful elections in future,’’ he said.
