“The INEC Must Wake Up Against Anambra 2017” – UPP Chairman
2nd November, 2017
Press Release
Clarion Call On The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)
The National Leadership of United Progressive Party (UPP) has been
actively involved in the campaigns in Anambra State for the November
18 Governorship election. Our commitment to our party and our
candidate Chief Osita Chidoka is to sustain the support and solidarity
of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party led by my humble
self as the National Chairman to campaign side by side with our
candidate’s campaign organization till the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) stipulated date for the end of campaigns.
Everybody in Anambra State will admit that the UPP campaign is by far
the most robust, vibrant and engaging campaign that is one hundred
percent issue-based, without allowing any room whatsoever for
mudslinging, name-calling or smear campaign of any sort. This claim is
self-evident and incontrovertible.
Our candidate Chief Osita Chidoka has recently unveiled his blueprint
for governance should the party win the governorship election. It is
on record that none of the 37 odd candidates representing 37 political
parties on the ballot has unveiled any form of blueprint to
demonstrate that they gave a thought to the developmental challenges
of governing Anambra State, except Chief Osita Chidoka.
The Osita Chidoka Blueprint is complete with timelines for regular
appraisal and appreciation. Our house to house campaigns which is also
technologically driven has brought the UPP highly committed and young
volunteers canvassing for vote for the party and its candidate to come
in regular contact with prospective voters on daily basis.
We are constrained to state that while we are making effort to take
our strong and powerful message to the grassroots, practically all our
closest rivals who have shown lack of capacity to engage the prospective voters in the manner we are
doing have resorted to spreading the false and unfortunate propaganda
that the Anambra Governorship Election slated for November 18, 2017
will not be different from the previous manipulated and discredited
elections. This has been going on for a while and is now being
intensified as a result of being intimidated by the sheer robustness
of the UPP campaign methods.
We wish to repeat our appeal to INEC that the time to fulfil their
pledge to political stakeholders in Nigeria especially political
parties that the Commission shall be fully involved in voter education
which is one of its primary responsibilities is now. It will be very
helpful and encourage unprecedented voter turnout in Anambra
governorship election if INEC can step out this time to promote the
method it promised Nigerians it will adopt in the Anambra governorship
election, namely the use of Upgraded Card Readers, the availability of
functional Card Readers for all the 6,200 Polling Units in Anambra
State, as well as the provision of Standby Card Readers in the event
of any breakdown during the exercise, the open counting and
announcement of result at the Polling Unit, the Capture of the result
of the votes with the Card Reader and the immediate transmission of
same to the Central Server at the State Capital, Awka.
This will go a long way in reassuring the Anambra State electorate
that the forthcoming Governorship election will not be business as
usual and that every vote cast will count.
We wish to further appeal to INEC to publish as a matter of urgency
and distribute copies to political parties participating in the
election in Anambra State, specimen ballot papers so that political
parties will know where their parties are located on the ballot sheet.
This is urgent and important because the unprecedented number of
political parties participating in the forthcoming governorship
election may very likely confuse some of the electorate with regard to
how to locate the actual position on the Ballot Sheet of the political
parties they wish to vote for. I believe that all serious minded
participating political parties will reproduce the INEC approved
specimen ballot sheet to aid their campaign in the remaining days
leading to November 18.
It will be sad if at the end of the day INEC is on record to have
remained aloof to this critical responsibility of the Commission to
educate, guide and reassure the voters.
–
CHIEF DR. CHEKWAS OKORIE
NATIONAL CHAIRMAN, UPP
