AKWA IBOM LG ELECTIONS, AKISIEC CHAIRMAN CLEARS THE AIR ON ESSIEN UDIM ELECTION QUAGMIRE
– says viral video on result announcement wasn’t from Akisiec’s Returning Officer.
– that the Commission never appointed the self acclaimed Returning officer, Professor Inyang Ating
– That authentic Returning Officer for Essien Udim is Prof. Uduak Okon
By Daniel Edon
Alarmed by the viral video of a Returning Officer announcing results of Chairmanship Election in Essien Udim, the Chairman of Akwa Ibom State Independent Electoral Commission, AKISIEC, Aniedi Ikoiwak, says he was shocked that despite all the doctored videos, AI video and deep fake videos, our people seems to believe anything that is turned into public space.
He said he was saddened that no one cared to call his office for verification, instead people just went to the social media to say what they don’t know and tar brushed for changing results to favour APC.
Ikoiwak said this while interacting with some Journalists in his office after the swearing in of newly elected Council Chairmen by the Executive Governor, Pastor Umo Eno.
He said he wanted to clear the air on the worrisome and embarrassing situation that the viral video might put the Commission and the State Government in bad light. He frown at the insinuation that the State Government only wanted to “dash” the Senate President, His Excellency Senator Godswill Akpabio, Essien Udim being his Local Government Area. Ikoiwak said that such can never be true, and that APC actually won in Essien Udim local government Area.
That he resisted the pressure to accept a wrong result for Essien Udim.
Ikoiwak confirmed that two Parties contested for the Election and that Usoro Ntiedo Effiong of APC won with 51,751 votes while Engr. Enobong P. Friday of PDP came 2nd., with 22, 799 votes.
The AKISIEC chairman said that he only got wind of what happened at Essien Udim, when the Assistant Electoral Officer, AEO reported that the Electoral Officer, EO, had absconded with the result sheet, and at that point he had to issue another result sheet duly signed by him, and ordered the AEO to return to Essien Udim and record the results as it were, from different units and return same to the Head Office.
The AKISIEC Chairman further said that as at 10 pm of Saturday, the day of the election, only 10 Local Government results were submitted to the headquarters including that of Essien Udim, and the results were sent to Inspiration Radio for announcement, while awaiting others.
Unfortunately the Radio management said that they can only do the News in the morning based on their schedule.
Ikoiwak also informed the Pressmen that it was after the Essien Udim results were submitted and sent to Radio that the security Officers at the Head office, reported that they were people who have brought another result saying that it was that of Essien Udim.
They were politely informed that Essien Udim result was already submitted and as such their results can’t be collected moreso that the were not authentic staff of Akisiec.
So they reportedly left in a convoy, and it wasn’t upto an hour, his attention was drawn to the viral video on Facebook showing one man who called himself Professor Inyang Ating announcing the Essien Udim results. Ikoiwak further said.
Elder Ikoiwak reiterated that the report on the video was completely false. The video was made in a house at Ewet Housing Estate
Hear him:
“I called you people today, to clarify the fact that the report on that video was completely false, fake one. I don’t know that man. I never appointed him. The man has never met me. I appointment 31 Returning Officers, and I know that the man wasn’t one of those appointed by the Commission. The authentic Returning Officer, RO, for Essien Udim is Professor Uduak Okon of Faculty of medical Science, University of Uyo.
Look at the video you will discovered that the self acclaimed RO was standing in an empty room, without table nor Chairs, no police officer, no other documents or election materials to show that it was at our office at Essien Udim. The video, I am told was hurriedly made at a house at Ewet Housing Estate, Uyo. Their drivers and their personal Aides were the ones cheering after the announcement just to create a scene of crowd of supporters.”
The unsuspected people had gone to Essien Udim, took the Electoral Officer, EO, and some electoral materials, away, and as I speak, I haven’t seen the EO. I have since suspended him.
The video was a distraction and someone might have done it to continue to Give A dog A Bad Name”
Elder Ikoiwak was full of praises to the Executive Governor of the State, Pastor Umo Eno, for allowing a leveling playing field for all Political Parties to participate in the Elections.
He said that he has gone to many States in the Country to observed elections and that they will be lodged in a hotel; the following morning the left without any election and results were still announced with the Ruling Party winning all seats and nothing happened, but he vowed that in Akwa Ibom State he won’t superintendent over such fraud and he made the Ruling Party to know that but many were calling for his removal but the State Governor refused and gave him the go ahead to conduct a fair and credible election.
The AKISIEC Chairman however admitted that there were some hitches on logistics because of late releases of funds to bus owners by their Bank. So that contributed to the delay in the arrival of materials at some polling units. He said.
In another flip, Ikoiwak said that he doesn’t believe that a Fair and Free Election is only when other Political Parties win, but when people decide who they want.
In his conclusion, Aniedi Ikoiwak, said that they are States that have dominant Party, and anytime an election is put out, the Party can always win, but the process of that one party winning all the time, should be an Area that we should interrogate so that we can actually be able to build our Electoral process.
– Daniel Edon is a a Journalist, Publisher of The Bubbles Newspaper and an online Blogger.
