APGA candidate flays Ebonyi South senatorial by-election

Mr Ifeanyi Eleje, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate in the Ebonyi South Senatorial District rerun has described the election as “hugely flawed”.

Eleje, who made the assertion on Saturday at Afikpo while speaking to newsmen, further described the process as “marred with intimidation”.

“This is the first election I witnessed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) telling voters to vote and go.

“Does it mean that the accreditation details would be used for thump print? I have reported to the INEC leadership in the State and it has not responded as promised,” he said.

He said that there was no hope for the nation’s electoral system if such trend continued and called for urgent steps to check such.

“This is an off-season elections so we expected more effectiveness in its conduct. What we however, saw was the use of authority to intimidate voters.

“This election just as all off-season elections, experienced low voter turnout and we expect such to reflect in the results,” he said.

The Head of Voter Education and Publicity Department of INEC in Ebonyi, Dr Christian Elekwa, however, dismissed Eleje’s assertion noting that the commission should not be associated with such.

Elekwa disclosed in an interview that the approved practice was voters being accredited and allowed to vote immediately.

“It is a simultaneous process and I don’t know where this sort of insinuation is coming from,” he said.