The Peoples Democratic Party’s Atiku-Okowa Presidential Campaign Organisation has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission to declare the Saturday, February 25, 2023, presidential election held across the country inconclusive.
The presidential campaign further requested that the electoral umpire set a date for the holding of elections in places where the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System was not employed and in areas affected by violence.
The appeal comes after the PDP protested INEC’s collation process, demanding a halt to further collation and staged a walkout from the collation center by the party’s collation center agents.
In a Tuesday morning statement by its spokesperson, Daniel Bwala, the PDP said, “Declare this election inconclusive and set a date for conduct of elections that addresses areas where BVAS was not used and where violence occurred which suppress the voting rights of the people.
“The conduct of the 2023 elections has been criticised across board as one that is marred by irregularities and total departure from the Electoral Act amendment.”
Bwala noted that this had resulted in a constitutional stalemate caused by the protest’s withdrawal from the coalition of political parties.
The campaign spokesman also noted that INEC should “stop national collation immediately and resolve the objections raised by parties pertaining to BVAS bypass and electronic transfer of results.
“Set a date for conduct of elections in the affected places and ensure results are uploaded as contained in the guidelines. The said elections must be free and fair and BVAS used accordingly.
“Cancel all the collated and announced results so far until such a time when all the results collated at the polling units alone be uploaded to INEC server, same only announced, duplicate copies of which all party agents have for transparency sake.”
He pointed out that the electoral umpire should also “address the Nigerian public in a televised speech on the sanctity of the processes and integrity of his person to regain the confidence of the Nigerian people and the international community.”
He also observed that it is clear and undisputed to all at this stage that INEC is refusing to address the observed problems and objections that have been widely expressed and shared and also corroborated by the report of the major stakeholders in the country, former presidents and international observers.
He further stated, “What is not clear is the intentions of INEC chairman and INEC as a commission. Section 65 of the electoral act mandates the INEC chairman to correct every anomaly (s) raised by stakeholders of the process (political party and their agents) within 7 days.”
