The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has been accused by Labour Party, LP, of refusing to upload results of the presidential polls collated in various polling units in Lagos and Delta states to the Central Server.
In a statement released on Saturday evening, February 25, the National Chairman of the party, Barrister Julius Abure, said INEC officials in connivance with the security agencies, are claiming that the BVAS have suddenly developed a fault and therefore cannot function.
He claimed that information from the party’s field men has it that in places like “Agege, Kosofe, Oshodi-Isolo, Surulere, and Ibeju Lekki,” amongst others where results show that Labour Party won convincingly, the INEC officials claim that the BVAS suddenly developed a fault when it concerns uploading results of the presidential election.
“Information reaching me has it that in Lagos, they have refused to upload the results for the presidential election, they have uploaded that of the Senate and House of Representatives but for the presidential, they have refused. And they are using the police to drive our agents and supporters out of the place. And they said that they have firm instruction from INEC headquarters not to upload.
For example, in Kosofe, they put the collation centre in a Local Government Area Headquarters. The place is sorrounded by APC and people are afraid of their life. They are not uploading, they said that they have been giving instruction to insist that the BVAS is faulty. And most of the places we won, but they have refused to upload.
As I speak, APC officials are in Yaba office of INEC negotiating with the officials. What I have said now is happening in Agege, Kosofe, Oshodi-Isolo, Surulere, we have this situation all over. In Ibeju Lekki, our local government chairman who attempted to stop them was arrested by the police.”
Abure said that similar situation is playing out across the collation centres in Delta state.
The Labour Party chairman, however, called on INEC to ensure that only genuine and verifiable results generated from the various polling units should be uploaded.
He also called on the police to resist the lure by the politicians to mar the gains of democracy by refusing to be used to deny Nigerians their choice of leaders.