Nigeria’s Southern and Middle-Belt Leaders Forum has raised alarm over alleged plans to rigged the 2019 general elections, urging the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to resist pressures from those bent on sabotaging the poll, asking for the commission to compromise the general elections.
In a statement to Journalist in Lagos, Monday, and signed by leaders of the forum, Yinka Odumakin, Bassey Henshaw, and Isuwa Dogo, it noted that there were reports that INEC had come under pressure to delete the electronic transmission of results from the Polling Units (PU) to a central server and the pasting of results at the polling units in the proposed guidelines for the 2019 elections.
“Our attention has been drawn to media reports on Sunday that the commission has come under pressure to delete the electronic transmission of results from the Polling Units (PU) to a central server and the pasting of results at the polling units in the proposed guidelines for the 2019 elections in sync with the refusal to sign the Electoral Bill passed by the National Assembly,” the forum said.
“If these reports are true, it may just confirm the fears that the perpetual boast by the ruling party and its allies of assurance of victory in the 2019 presidential polls even before it holds is not based on winning the hearts of the people but through underhand means,” it noted.
The group stressed that rigging often starts with the changing of results announced by the Polling Officers as party agents are expected to countersign results but the refusal of any agent to sign does not invalidate the results, while often allowing compromised polling officers to change figures between the Polling Units and the Ward Collation centres.
The group advised INEC to be mindful that the credibility of the conduct of the 2019 elections depended much with the continued existence of Nigeria as a country and therefore must be above board.
According to the group, INEC must use form EC 60 E which will contain the scores of all the candidates at every PU, which must be pasted at every Polling Unit and transmitted to a central server by the presiding officer in the presence of agents.
Iniobong Iwok
