The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has indirectly held the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) responsible for the poor turnout of voters during the inconclusive Anambra governorship held Saturday, November 6.
Recall that the separatist group had ordered the sit-at-home across the South East region following the incarceration of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
But in a statement released last week by its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, IPOB announced the cancellation of the one-week sit-at-home order in the region.
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The group disclosed that it cancelled the order following consultations with elders, traditional, and religious leaders in the zone.
But INEC, however, insinuated that the poor turnout of voters during the election on Saturday was as a result of the IPOB’s sit-at-home.
INEC’s Supervising Residence Electoral Commissioner in Anambra, Sam Egwu, while featuring on Channels TV programme on Sunday, said voters refused to come and vote due to fear of being attacked by the proscribed group.
He said: “There is a whole state of fear that has been created by the politics of agitation for a separate state in this part of the country.
“IPOB has been able to enforce the sit-at-home order over time. So the fear of IPOB has become the beginning of wisdom.
“We have had a problem with extremely low voter turnout. The voter turnout, I think, if you are scientific in terms of what we are seeing in many local governments, you are actually dealing with less than 25 percent voter turnout, and this is not really good for our democracy.”
SurgeZirc NG reports INEC in the early hours of Monday, declared the November 6 governorship election in Anambra state inconclusive.
The Returning Officer (RO) for the Anambra governorship election, Professor Florence Obi made the announcement at the INEC head office in Awka, Anambra capital stating that there was no election in Ihiala Local Government Area of the state.
Obi, the vice-chancellor of the University of Calabar declared that the election process remains suspended until after a supplementary election is held in all the polling units of Ihiala Local Government.
The RO also stated that according to the Nigerian Constitution it was mandatory for INEC to conduct elections in the affected area before declaring a winner.
The supplementary election has been scheduled to hold on Tuesday, 9th November, 2021.
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The candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Prof Chukwuma Soludo, is currently leading after securing majority of results declared in the votes cast in Saturday’s Anambra State governorship election.
Soludo was, however, not declared the winner of the election yet due to the suspension of election in Ihiala Local Government Area, SurgeZirc NG gathered.
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