Information reaching Blueprint revealed that the remaining collation of results and eventual announcement of winner of Abia state governorship election will take place later on Wednesday March 22, 2023, barring any unforeseen circumstance.
This is after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) suspended the final lap of result collation in the state due to controversies surrounding outcome of election from Obingwa Local Government Area where the highest votes usually emanate from.
As against the expected number of accredited votes from the LGA, there were indications that the final result collated suddenly shut up, a situation that prompted INEC headquarters to intervene.
Now, Blueprint has been reliably informed that the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology Owerri, and state collation officer Professor Nnenna Oti is already on her way back to Umuahia, Abia state INEC headquarters.
She is joined by the state administrative secretary, Clement Oha to complete the process.
Head of Voter Education and Publicity of INEC, Mrs. Rebecca Jim, has already confirmed the latest development.
Aside, Abia, final collation of Enugu and Adamawa states are still being awaited.
Meanwhile, well-meaning stakeholders have waded into been wading into the electoral logjam.
One of them, a strong voice in public matters, veteran political and media strategist, Chief Mrs Mary Ikoku has called on INEC not to delay any further in declaring winners of 2023 governorship elections in Abia, Enugu and Adamawa states.
Ikoku, an All Progressives Congress (APC) aspirant for House of Representatives for Arochukwu-Ohafia Federal Constituency in the 2023 general elections who spoke through a terse statement titled, “INEC, Do The Right Thing Now”, on Tuesday March 21, warned that any attempt to tamper with the awaited results could trigger breakdown of law and order.
Chief Mrs Ikoku, a policy development expert turned politician said, “In Enugu, Abia and Adamawa states in particular, the INEC has been going back and forth, speaking from both sides of their mouth and playing hide and seek with the election results.
“In all of the three states mentioned above, the electorate already knows who their duly elected gubernatorial candidates are. But INEC claims it doesn’t for sundry contrived reasons.”
“This country is already on edge after the February 25 and March 18 elections. INEC should therefore be doing and be seen to be doing everything to de-escalate the tension, anger and disillusionment in the land and not to deliberately or unwittingly do the opposite.
“I hereby call on President Buhari and the INEC Chairman to call the INEC officials in these and similar states to order. It is time to do the right thing for once and save Nigeria and Nigerians the possibility of further embarrassment and crises. A stitch in time saves nine,” she said.
