The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, has told the European Union (EU) that despite the redeployment of Amina Zakari to a different department at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), he still does not have confidence in the electoral body.
The party had consistently called for the removal of Zakari from INEC’s sensitive position given her relationship with President Muhammadu Buhari, which posited could not guarantee a free, fair and credible general election.
Speaking when he received a delegation of the European Union (EU) Election Exploration mission to Nigeria led by Niclay Paus, who called on him on Wednesday, Secondus said that the intelligence available to the party showed that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has concluded arrangement with INEC to manipulate the electoral process.
The party boss said what happened at the governorship election in Osun State merely underscored the party’s fears that INEC is not ready to be neutral.
He said that even though “the main agent of the APC in the Commission,” Zakari was deployed from operations department, “we asked for her total resignation as she is capable of influencing others within the electoral body.”
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Secondus added: “When we eschewed violence after the electoral theft in Osun state and decided to excise our right to peaceful protest, the Inspector General of Police directed his personnel to tear gas us notwithstanding the personalities involved in the protest, the Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representstives, five state governors and National Chairman and members of the National Working Committee NWC and other critical leaders.
“Our fear is strong that the APC and the administration are not disposing themselves for a peaceful 2019 general election and we base our position on the multiplicity of induced crisis across the country
“With all the unprecedented bloodletting in the country, the President is not engaging the people and a select group operating as cabals have hijacked the system.”
The National Chairman urged international partners of Nigeria especially EU and America to bring their influence to bear on the INEC to conduct free, fair and credible elections.
Secondus also wanted them to show more than passing interests in the activities of security agencies particularly the Police as a bias Police force is an easy way to encouraging violence.
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