BEVERLY HILLS, January 14, (THEWILL) – Chief Victor Umeh of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) has been declared winner of the Anambra Central Senatorial re-run election conducted on Saturday by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The senatorial election took place in seven local governments of Anambra including Njikoka, Awka North, Idemili South, Dunukofia, Awka South, Anaocha and Idemili North but was marred by apathy and errors while a large section of the electorate failed to turn up.
Announcing the final result early Sunday morning, Prof Charles Esimone, the returning officer, said Umeh won in the seven council areas with 64, 878 votes and was the winner of the contest and returned elected.
Esimone who is Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka said the total number of registered voters in the seven local government areas were 745, 828 out of which 67, 872 were accredited.
“I Prof. Charles Esimone certify that I am the returning officer for the Anambra Central Senatorial rerun election,” he said.
“I, hereby, declare that Chief Victor Umeh, having satisfied the conditions of the election and scored the highest number of votes is declared winner and returned elected.”
Meanwhile, Labour and Employment Minister, Chris Ngige, has threatened to sue INEC for deliberately including his name on the list of the candidates for the rerun election with a view to humiliating him.
The Minister said he had, in accordance with the provisions of the Electoral Act, informed INEC of his withdrawal from the rerun election on the 13th of January, 2016 when the election was originally scheduled for March 2016.
He wondered what the commission was up to after rejecting the name forwarded to it by the All Progressives Congress (APC) as his replacement after monitoring the primary that produced the candidate.
He accused INEC of working for the candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) to emerge unopposed and described the election as a charade.
“I have since, by a letter dated 11th January 2016, withdrawn from this rerun election when it was earlier scheduled for March 2016 in accordance with the provisions of sections 33 and 35 of the Electoral Act 2010 for personal and Family reasons,” he revealed.
“My party, the APC, accepted and promptly wrote INEC for my substitution. It went ahead and communicated its intention to organise a primary election for my substitution.
“The primary monitored by INEC was organised at Awka and the name of a new candidate that emerged was promptly submitted, only for INEC to reject the new candidate on 29 January.
“My party, the APC and INEC are in the Court of Appeal, Abuja, over this obnoxious and illegal action of INEC with hearing on the matter fixed for 23rd of January which is still within the armbit of 90 days ordered by court, only for the INEC to fix an ‘election’ for 13th in order to give an unfair advantage to the APGA candidate to go ‘unopposed’.”
