Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State yesterday accused Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of snatching electoral materials in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of the state, just as voter apathy marred the House of Assembly election in the state.
Obiano who spoke to newsmen shortly after he was accredited at his Aguleri polling unit at about 11.06am said he had already reported the matter to the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) who according to him, promised to send another set of materials and personnel.
He said that security operatives were searching for the people, saying “We are searching for them and if we get report of where they are, I will storm there and get all of them arrested.”
An eye-witness account alleged that the said electoral material were carted away from the INEC office in Ekwusigo Local Government in the early hours of yesterday by thugs of the PDP on the directives of two stalwarts of the party aided by the police and army personnel.
The eye-witness, further said that the invasion of the INEC office was fierce as the invaders who allegedly came in a convoy, molested INEC officials including the Electoral Officer (EO) and drove away.
Sunday Sun gathered that INEC, however, supplied fresh electoral materials to the area following the intervention of the state governor.
Reacting to the low turnout, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and senatorial candidate of the party for the Anambra Central zone, Chief Victor Umeh, blamed it on the massive rigging of the National Assembly election in the state where he alleged that people’s votes were not allowed to count.
Umeh who had his accreditation in his polling unit in Aguluzoigbo with his wife said, “The apathy is basically because of the fraudulent results they announced in the last election. If you could remember, this place recorded very huge turnout on the 28. A lot of people returned from the township where they live to come here to vote and when they announced the fraudulent result, many people didn’t bother to come back for this. I believe that it affected the turnout today and the report I have received across the state is the same, low turnout of people.
