Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chieftain and Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, is applauding the Local Government elections in Enugu State, though the All Progressives Congress, APC, states it is fraud it will challenge in court.
Dr. Ben Nwoye, APC Chairman in Enugu told journalists in Enugu shortly after the election that there was no election there.
PDP won the chairmanship seats in the 17 council areas, in addition to all the 258 seats meant for councillors.
In a statement Ekweremadu said the election was the best Local Government election in recent history in the country.
Ekweremadu, who commended the State Government for its policy of non-interference in the electoral process, also congratulated the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, on its outstanding victory, noting that it was just the beginning of payback to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for his developmental strides in the state in the time of financial crunch and the political peace he restored to the State.
He said: “The poor conduct of local government elections has been of grave concern to Nigerians in the constitution amendment process, but the Saturday council election conducted by the Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission, ENSIEC, is unarguably the best in recent years.
“It is one of those rare occasions state electoral umpires have inspired confidence in the nation’s electoral process and it adds to the democratic credentials of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and the PDP.
“I commend the Ugwuanyi-led administration for ensuring that ENSIEC enjoyed total independence and the necessary resources, while also making it possible for the people to troupe out en masse to exercise their franchise in a secure, free, fair, and credible democratic process”.
On PDP’s landslide victory, Ekweremadu said: “This is just a prelude to 2019 when the people of Enugu will fully appreciate the Ugwuanyi administration for the equitable socio-economic development in the state, workers welfare, and political peace in the State”.
He enjoined the Council Chairmen and Councilors-elect to key into the development agenda of the PDP administration in the State to ensure that the blessings of democracy trickled down to the people at the grassroots.
APC’s Nwoye disclosed there was widespread violence, wondering: “even if the ENSIEC does not want to do election, does it worth the blood of anybody?”
He alleged that the electoral body disenfranchised the people of the State by making sure that there were no result sheets at polling units, while already prepared results were announced.
“In this circumstance, we have no other option than to go to court; we won’t call for cancellation because there was no election in the first place; you cannot cancel what does not exist; so we are going ahead to challenge the outcome of the charade they did today in court,” he said.
But Chairman of Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission, ENSIEC, Mike Ajogwu (SAN) disclosed that elections did not take place only in two wards in Udi Council Area adding that it did not affect the result of the chairmanship election there.
He denied reports of violence during the election, stressing that the election remained free, fair and credible.
“I monitored the election; anybody that was part of the process will find out that it was very free, fair and very credible.
“All the result sheets were genuine; claims of fake result sheets were false; nobody can contemplate of anything fake here.”