It was drama on Tuesday at the 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, as some persons accused of electoral offences publicly protested against the army for parading them over what they described as false allegations.
The Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Aminu Iliyasu, who addressed a press conference, claimed the people were arrested for alleged involvement in election malpractice during the Presidential and National Assembly elections on Saturday.
During the briefing, which was televised live on national television, the suspects who included some officials of the state government, cried foul and faulted the army for parading them as criminals.
The army also alleged that some persons, including the governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, attempted to induce them financially during the polls, a claim Governor Wike has denied, describing it as baseless.
According to the governor, the army is struggling to find a way out of the allegations of political killings leveled against them, as well as his allegation of an assassination attempt on him by the army.
INEC Electoral Officer of Ikwerre Local Government Area, Mrs. Mary Imawuya, said that the military personnel did not allow the ad hoc staff to carry out collation in their wards.
She said, “Between 7pm and 8pm on Saturday, February 23, 2019, the military invaded INEC office at Isiokpo and they walked out every ad hoc staff that were there to present their results to the Collation Officers.
The evidence is still there. We took recordings.”Also speaking, INEC Electoral Officer for Emohua Local Government Area, Kenneth Etah, blamed the disruption of the collation process in the area on the shootings by the military.
“As I speak, I do not have any results to present for Emohua Local Government Area because collation did not take place,” he said.
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