Why PDP, LP Agents, Others Protested at the National Collation Center

Oru Leonard 

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party and other party agents protested at the National Collation Centre, Abuja today due alleging suspected irregularities related to inability of uploading of results on INEC portal.

Dino Melaye of the PDP alongside Former Governor Emeka Ihedioha, has after the first and second state presentation of results by the State Collation Officers for the Presidential Election (SCOPE), faulted the procedure of collation.

According to him the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), was supposed to report wether the results were uploaded to the INEC portal or not before announcing and submitting the results from the State.

Deno who at several intervals interrupted the collation proceedings during Kwara, Osun and Ondo State reports calling on the INEC Chairman to urgently address the challenges of not uploading results on INEC portal in order to compare with the States returning officers are presenting, decided to work out

“How can the election processes be transparent free and fair; despite what the electoral act of 2022 as amended has said on that”, he queried.

After the announcement of Kwara, Osun and Ondo, by the various States returning officers, other  party agents  Labour, PRP also expressed their sadness over the INEC portal where results are supposed to be uploaded and the contention about the differences of the figures not cleared to them especially; according to them, there are some numbers that makes their presentation suspicious due to over voting against the accreditation numbers

Addressing journalists after the three states result presentation, Deno Melaye protested and accused the INEC chairman by saying that he did not followed the 2022 electoral act vividly.

According to him, “electoral act of 2022 as amended, in section 47/3 said that where and if Card readers or BVAS failed, and they could not get a replacement, the election in that area should be cancelled.

“We have seen this from the result of Ekiti where the State returning officer said some election in some areas were cancelled due to BVAS bypass and that is why we are now asking the chairman to show us on the screen here the result that was uploaded after the election at the polling units.

“That is the only way we can test the veracity and the authenticity of the presentation, if not what we are only here for is to endorsed the fraud that has been done from the polling units to the Wards and to the state.

“We are not here to rubber stamped the fraud they have done and that is why we are asking them but the INEC chairman did not allowed us to do that.

“We are not here to do the rubber stamped work, so, if we come back from break and nothing is done, we are going to take action because we know Nigerians are watching and the World at large is watching too.

This is where the issue of presidential election results presentation stopped before filing this report.

Addressing journalists early after the Kwara, Osun and Ondo states result presentation, Deno Melaye protested and accused the INEC chairman by saying that he did not followed the 2022 electoral act vividly.

He said, “electoral act of 2022 as amended, in section 47/3 said that where and if Card readers or BVAS failed, and they could not get a replacement, the election in that area should be cancelled.

“We have seen this from the result of Ekiti where the State returning officer said some election in some areas were cancelled due to BVAS bypass and that is why we are now asking the chairman to show us on the screen here the result that was uploaded after the election at the polling units.

“That is the only way we can test the veracity and the authenticity of the presentation, if not what we are only here for is to endorsed the fraud that has been done from the polling units to the Wards and to the state.

“We are not here to rubber stamped the fraud they have done and that is why we are asking them but the INEC chairman did not allowed us to do that.

“We are not here to do the rubber stamped work, so, if we come back from break and nothing is done, we are going to take action because we know Nigerians are watching and the World at large is watching too.

This is where the issue of presidential election results presentation stopped before filing this report.”