Rivers state Chapter of Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to prevail on the Nigerian military to stay clear from Rivers state in the March 9th rescheduled Governorship and House of Assembly elections in the state.
Speaking at a press briefing in Port Harcourt on Thursday, Comrade Kukang Ledum Joseph, IPAC’s spokesman in Rivers state who spoke on behalf of the group said the Army have become a threat not only to the holding of peaceful, free and credible elections “but also to the survival of democracy in Rivers State and must therefore be excluded from participating howsoever in the Governorship and House of Assembly elections in Rivers state.”
He said that the week and days preceding last Saturday’s rescheduled elections, Governor Wike and several other stakeholders repeatedly alerted the nation on the alleged planned partisan involvement of the Army in the election process in Rivers state.
He said despite the publicity the alarm raised by the governor attracted neither the Chief of Army Staff, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) nor the accused person reacted to “these weighty and very troubling allegations.”
He said that Governor Wike and PDP stakeholders were maligned and regarded as false alarmists crying wolf where there were none.
He said: “Saturday 23rd February 2019 will forever remain in the memory of Rivers people as a black and bloody Saturday in the election history of the state simply because the Army decided to be overly partisan in the breach of their abiding duty to be neutral and provide security for the electoral process.
“What on earth can justify the killings of as many 16 unarmed civilians in a rustic community, which members were barely insisting on their participatory rights and freedoms in the face of the brazen onslaught to scuttle the electoral process.
“In Abonnema, Buguma, Degema communities alone over 18 innocent civilians including INEC’s ad-hoc staff and a member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) were killed.
“They also acted directly to prevent the general elections from holding in the entire Akuku Toru Local Government Area and parts of Asari-Toru and Degema Local Government Areas under the guise of carrying out election duties.
“We are all now aware that the direct and partisan involvement of the Army resulted in the outright cancellation of the general elections and consequent disenfranchisement of as many as one million electorates in six Local Government areas of the State such as Akuku Toru, Ahoada West, Bonny, Emouha, Ikwerre and Okrika.
“Where then is the legitimacy of the results turned in and declared by INEC for Rivers state in the face of the wanton killings, snatching of election materials, disruption of voters, hostage taking of INEC officials and return of fake numbers to APC.
“Obviously, the army, by its brazen and unlawful involvement in last Saturday’s general election has become a serious threat to peaceful, free, fair and credible elections in Rivers State,” he said.
He therefore pleaded with President Buhari to order the Army to stay away from election duties in Rivers state so as to allow the police perform their constitutional responsibilities for peaceful and credible elections.
The Deputy Director of Public Relations, 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Col. Aminu Iliyazu, said the Nigerian Army has remained apolitical and has a professional mandate and responsibility of aiding civil authority and safe-guarding key points and vulnerable points of the country.
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