The All Progressives Congress (APC), Rivers State Chapter, has demanded the immediate redeployment of Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mr. Aniedi Ikoiwak, for allegedly colluding with Governor Nyesom Wike and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to rig the December 10 rerun legislative elections in the state in favour of PDP. The demand was contained in a statement issued on Monday morning in Port Harcourt and signed by Rivers APC Chairman, Chief (Dr.) Davies Ibiamu Ikanya.

The statement said: “With the revelation of the unholy partnership between Wike and Mr. Aniedi Ikoiwak, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) to deny a large chunk of the Rivers State electorate a voice during the rerun election, we hereby demand for the immediate redeployment of this enemy of democracy. Mr. Ikoiwak had the audacity to announce PDP’s George Sekibo as a Senator without adding votes from three LGAs of Etche, Emohua and Ikwerre LGAs which would have made APC’s Andrew Uchendu the winner. Based on this, we wish to ask Sekibo, Osinakachukwu Ideozu and their likes in PDP not to celebrate their fake victories as we will not allow killers of our people to lead us but will use every constitutional means at our disposal to retrieve the mandate given to our candidates by the voters.”

Rivers APC berated Wike, whom it said was caught on audio tape shouting: “Tell the Electoral Officers (EO) in Etche and Khana to return my money or I’ll kill them ... I’ll make sure that they will not leave Rivers State... I understand that both of them are from Plateau State... I’ll kill them if they don’t return my money.”

The party said: “With this latest revelation we have been vindicated that Wike is the most bloodthirsty Governor in Nigeria who if not checked will surely derail our democracy. Who knows how many Rivers State people that Wike and his PDP hoodlums would have killed in order for the sake of electoral victory if not for the Police and other security agencies?

“Having watched the outbursts of Chief Wike before, during and after the December 10 rerun election, we have come to the conclusion that Wike is nothing but a comical tyrant and blackmailer who needs to be reined in before he derail our hard-won nascent democracy. Gov. Wike has not ceased to accuse the Army, DSS, Police, INEC and APC leadership of collaborating to cause havoc during the rerun election while in actual fact he is the brain perpetuating all the killings, ballot snatching of INEC sensitive materials and fake announcements of induced INEC results.

“If we may ask as we are accused of working with the Police to force INEC to rig the rerun election, how come a Police Officer, DSP Mohammed Alkali was brutally beheaded with his aide at the usual spot where PDP hoodlums kill other security agents at Omoku? How come PDP candidates are declared as winners in most of the results so far declared by INEC?”

On the Police Probe Panel on the 70 incidents of electoral violence reported by INEC, Rivers APC said: “We wish to reiterate that Wike must and we insist that he must submit himself to the Police Probe Panel to assist the Police unearth and end the killings in Rivers State since he assumed office. Wike has the habit of setting up some funny probe panels in the past and should not be afraid to submit himself to a probe that will assist to restore the sanctity of live in our dear state unless he is indirectly accepting the fact that he has a hand in most of the political killings in our dear state.”

The party commended what it called “the unusual courage displayed by the Ogonis who did not only vote overwhelmingly for the party’s candidates but also stoutly defended their votes.” “Not minding the tyranny of Wike, the Ogonis have proved that they are truly soldiers of democracy by ensuring that their son Magnus Abe was duly elected Senator, thereby shaming Wike and his army of undemocratic elements and appreciating the Ogoni clean-up initiative of President Muhammdu Buhari,” the statement said.

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