Polls: Constitution, Electoral Act violated In Many States — Yiaga Africa Laments

A Civil Society organization, Yiaga Africa, on Sunday, lamented that the gubernatorial/ State Houses of Assembly elections held in 28 States of the Federation on Saturday, were massively manipulated and characterised by violations of the Constitution and the 2022 Electoral Act.

The group while briefing journalists in Abuja, also noted that the elections were signposted with voter suppression, electoral violence, electoral impunity, vote buying and capture of the results management by political thugs in many States of the Federation.

It bemoaned the use of political thugs to suppress voters, which resulted in the disenfranchisement of many who came out to express their civic responsibility by voting for the candidates of their choice.

In a statement signed by the leaders of the group, Ezenwa Nwagwu and Samson Itodo, Yiaga Africa called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to ensure proper oversight of the results collation process and ensure that results declared under duress or in breach of the Electoral Act, INEC Guidelines or Manual are reviewed in line with Section 65 of the Electoral Act.

It reads: Yiaga Africa calls on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure proper oversight of the results collation process and ensure that results declared under duress or in breach of the Electoral Act, INEC Guidelines or Manual are reviewed in line with Section 65 of the Electoral Act.

“Yiaga Africa calls on the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) agents to ensure effective and adequate deployment of security personnel to the collation centres to properly secure INEC officials, observers, media reporters and party agents deployed and arrest offenders disrupting the process and causing violence.

“Yiaga Africa calls on political parties, their supporters and voters across the states to remain calm and peaceful as the results collation process is still ongoing.

“As INEC continues to collate results, we encourage all citizens, candidates and supporters to remain, calm and peaceful, and reject any call for violence. Only INEC has the legal mandate to announce the election results and return a candidate as a winner.

“We urge all stakeholders to respect the commission’s constitutional power and refrain from declaring election results. Yiaga Africa enjoins citizens to remain calm and maintain peace as INEC collates the results.

“Yiaga Africa continues to monitor the results collation until the final completion. As soon as INEC announces the official results, Yiaga Africa will convene a press conference to share its statement on the accuracy of the election results.

“Yiaga Africa condemns in unequivocal terms acts of voter suppression fuelled by ethnic profiling, political thuggery and desperation to secure electoral victory at all costs. In flagrant abuse of the constitution and the 2022 Electoral Act, registered voters and fellow citizens were denied the right to vote in some states.

“Voting is a constitutionally guaranteed right of voters that requires free and fair participation of all eligible voters in a safe and secure environment. A denial of this right undermines the credibility of electoral outcomes.”