A business mogul and one of the non-Indigenes resident in Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State, Chief Sir Kyrian Iherikamadu Onyeji, “Omeihukwu I” of Mbieri Ancient Kingdom in Imo State has stated that the last minutes cancellation of the Nigerian general election last Saturday February 16, 2019 had a devastating effect on the citizens which cannot be quantified.
He stated this in the chat with newsmen over the weekend at his residence in Port Harcourt
According to him, “some of us prepared and travelled home with our whole family for the election and you can imagine, the expenditure incurred and risk taken only for one to wake up on the D-day to hear of the sudden cancellation by the INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu without cogent reasons.”
Chief Onyeji said the implication is that many voters might not be willing to travel again to exercise their franchise which eventually might affect the overall bulk results expected for the winners.
He also recalled that those whose livelihood depend on daily income as well as the public holidays declared by the State Governor were some of the losses which no doubt would affect the voter’s interest.
The businessman said the development was a predetermined rigging mechanism by the All Progressives Congress to manipulate the election to their favour, adding that the INEC chairman should be made to compensate the citizens for the huge loss incurred.
“That cancellation was demoralizing and many who can’t make it again to where they registered have been automatically defranchised.
The implication also is that the casted votes would be 50-50 either way”, he noted.
He made it clear that with this scenario, it is doubtful if the conduction of the polls would have the three major attributes of election which includes fairness, transparency and credibility.
The monarch however stated that the handwriting of the negative development was earlier seen on the wall when the CJN was suddenly replaced and some new electoral tribunal judges appointed at the eve of the election, which he noted were indications of desperation and dishonesty. Chief Onyeji lamented that with this development it shows that it will be difficult to have a free and peaceful election without manipulations or intimidation by the authorities.
Chief Onyeji further disclosed that Nigeria appears to be practicing a weak or flexible constitution whereby the three arms of government including the Executives, Judiciary and Legislatures are not truly independent.
“If there are truly independent why would the Executives be harassing the other arms of governments, to the point of truncating the federal character policy of the country that was meant for peace, unity and development of the nation”. If the three arms of government are also working cohesively, President Buhari would have been impeached for long for a lot of offences or at least over ruling him on the lopsided appointments without qualms, he observed.
The Executives is manipulating the Judiciary and the Legislature which ordinarily should be independent and checkmating each other for the good of the Country” he declared.
Chief Onyeji made it clear that the APC led Federal Government has through its action, inaction and utterances been fast wording the actualization of the Biafran agitation.
