THE Independent National Electoral Commission has reacted to the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi’s protest on the non availability of result sheets at his polling units on Saturday.
Amaechi had refused to be accredited in his polling unit during the presidential and National Assembly elections because he did not sight the result sheets.
But INEC’s statement signed by the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mrs. Gesila Khan, and issued in Port Harcourt on Sunday, insisted that the commission was not under any obligation to show everybody election result sheets.
Khan explained that all political parties were expected to have their agents at the distribution centre to ensure that election materials were complete before officials move to the field.
“INEC wishes to inform the general public that the law does not permit everyone to be shown the result sheets, hence all political parties are expected to have their party agents at the distribution centres to ensure that the materials (both sensitive and non-sensitive) are all completed before the election officials proceed to the field.
“Also, the agents at the polling units are expected to ensure that materials are complete before election commences. Where there is shortfall, the party agent will have it in their report and submit complaint to INEC,” the state REC added.
She pointed out that the agent of the All Progressives Congress, Mr. Steve Worgu, was at the INEC office in the Ikwerre Local Government Area and he signed for all election materials, including result sheets before INEC officials moved to the field.
“Also, INEC did not receive any report from any APC party agent in all the 181 polling units in Ikwerre Local Government Area.
At the time the Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, complained of not sighting the electoral result sheets, voting has not commenced; that was merely accreditation stage, which has nothing to do with result sheets.
