Opposition parties walkout as crisis rocks INEC’s stakeholders meeting in Imo

Crisis rocked the stakeholders meeting organized by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for this weekend’s Governorship election in Imo State on Tuesday night.

The Crisis started immediately INEC’s national Commissioner representing South East, Kenneth Ukeagu, who is representing the National chairman of INEC, Mahmood Yakubu, ordered journalists to shot their cameras and gadgets after he had declared the interactive session opened.

Members of the opposition political parties led by the running mates of the Labour Party governorship candidate, Tony Nwulu and that of the Peoples Democratic Party, Jones Onyereri, opposed.

They said that the call by the INEC’S chairman was a confirmation that the All Progressives Congress (APC)had made arrangements with the electoral umpire to rig the election.

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Nwulu specifically said there was no way the media would be shut out of the stakeholder’s meeting.

He asked Ukeagu if the meeting was a secret cult and said that plans by INEC to rig the election in favour of the APC.

The PDP governorship candidate’s running mate, Onyereri supported Nwulu and displayed copies of documents he described as fake results sheets posted on the INEC’s portal during the House of Assembly election in the state.

Immediately, he said there was a shouting march as members of the APC in the hall surged towards the corner where the opposition party members were sitting.

Immediately that was done, all the traditional rulers in the hall fled, including the nine Resident Electoral Commissioners deployed to the state for the election.

The hall became rowdy as opposing party supporters reigned abuse on each and nearly fought each other.

Security agents could not restore normally as the verbal abuses raged.

The opposition political parties were shouting, demanding that the REC in the state, Slvia Agu, should be redeployed from the state based on allegedly working for the APC.