THE last may not have been heard over the controversy surrounding the list of ad hoc staff drawn up by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for February 16 election in Edo state.
The Edo State chapter of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) had sharply criticized the list for containing the names of sympathizers of the All Progressives Congress (APC) instead of university lecturers.
Irked by the decision of the electoral umpire to go ahead with the list for the February 16 polls despite its objection, the opposition party spokesman, Mr. Chris Nehikhare said that a meeting between top officials of Edo state government and the recently recruited Ad-Hoc staff of INEC yesterday in Benin yesterday showed that the APC government has lost the support and the confidence of the people.
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Nehikhare who spoke in Benin said that the move was an indication that the APC government has resorted to bribery, inducement and falsification strategy to subvert the will of the people.
He called on Edo people to resist the undemocratic antics of the Edo APC government. He said that the government ought to be mindful of what happened in Ondo state in 1983 and the unfortunate manipulation of the Western Region elections in the First Republic and the people’s reaction.
Nehikhare said: “We wish to state clearly that for our democracy to survive, all political actors must respect the inalienable rights of our people to freely choose the leaders they want.
“We call on all registered voters in Edo state and our indefatigable supporters to remain calm and be vigilant.”
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