2023 Poll: APC raises alarm of alleged plot by PDP agents to temper with BIVAS machine

By Akpos Oghenetega,

Barely 9 days to Nigeria’s general elections, the All Progressives Congress, APC, Delta State Charter has raised an alarm over a sinister plot by a Peoples Democratic Party, Senatorial Candidate in Delta in connivance with some elements in Independent National Electoral Commission’s headquarters in Abuja to temper with the configuration of Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BIVAS) machines to be deployed to Delta.

Delta APC while calling on the leadership of INEC and security agencies in the country to carry out a thorough investigation over the allegation, said that the PDP in its desperation for power has restored to underground tactics to gain an advantage through a rigged process to undermine the will of Deltans to freely choose their leaders in a free and fair election.

Speaking at a Press Conference at Warri on Tuesday, the Delta APC Publicist Secretary, Barr Ebata Onojehuo, said the alert became necessary following the outcome of Osun election which shows that the BIVAS Machine can be manipulated and that PDP in Delta State has a history of manipulating every electoral process.

He said that the Delta APC believe in the capacity of INEC to conduct credible elections, however, they will not leave anything to chance having gone round the state to campaign and canvas for votes, that the party is confident of victory at the poll, hence INCE must leave up to its responsibility of ensuring that BIVAS machines to be deployed to Delta State are not compromised.

The party also alleged that a serving Delta Commissioner has hijacked PVCs of Ewu Ward 1, Ughelli Local Government Area, with the intent to use them to her party’s advantage, thereby preventing voters from Ward from collecting their voters’ cards and freely voting for their chosen candidate during the coming elections.

Delta APC in the petition addressed to the INEC National Chairman, dated February 9^th, 2023, reads: “We write to humbly inform you of the grand connivance between INEC officials in Delta State and at the National headquarters, of the commission and PDP top officials, including Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa, to subvert the 2023 General Elections in the State, through tampering with the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BIVAS) machines, using financial inducement. If the plot is allowed to fruition, the consequences will be devastating. The plot that is presently on ground is to input predetermined figures into the BIVAS machines that will be deployed to the polling units, before the commencement of voting on elections day. It is in high gear, especially for the Presidential, Senatorial and Governorship elections. The already-loaded figures will be credited to the PDP, to give the party a head start even before the elections begin.

“Already, a Senatorial Candidate of PDP is holed up at his LIFE CAMP, by LENTO ALUMINIUM, Abuja residence, where he holds nocturnal and clandestine meetings with INEC’s officials on how to subvert the operations of the BIVAS machines in his senatorial district and the state, in general, to confer an undue advantage on PDP. The unscrupulous INEC officials have opted to perfect the nefarious mission and requested the notorious Senatorial Candidate, who is a strong member of Governor Okowa’s inner circles to come up with a list of individuals, who would be trained to achieve the subversive results.

“Available reports indicate that the Senatorial Candidate, notorious for handling similar pervasive assignments in aid of PDP Governors of the state for self-enrichment in the past is currently recruiting other candidates of PDP in the February 25th and March 11th general election, to raise funds to placate INEC’s officials and consequently benefit from the nefarious scheme. Banking on the wishful success of the self-help, the Senatorial Candidate has abandoned campaigns aimed at persuading eligible voters in his locality. For these people, the forthcoming elections would be business as usual, in which they planned to subvert the wishes of Deltans to elect their leaders in a free and fair contest.

“Sir, it will interest you to know that just last weekend, social media was saturated with reports that a serving Commissioner in the cabinet of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa hijacked the PVCs meant for eligible voters in Ewu Ward 1 in Ughelli South LGA of the state. Tongues are wagging that Commissioner acted with a premeditated motive to compel the owners of the PVCs to vote for her preferred Candidates in the elections in the locality.

“Information obtained at Asaba shows Governor Okowa and his cronies are seriously collecting people’s PVCs and hoarding same across all LGAs. They have perfected plans to hack into the INEC’s server and vote by proxy using these PVCs in connivance with unscrupulous corps members and some INEC staff.

“There are litanies of unambiguous impunity by top officials of the state government and PDP’s bigwigs to truncate the patriotic intentions of INEC to conduct free, fair and credible elections on February 25th and March 11th, 2023 in Delta State.

“This must not be allowed to happen. All parties must be given equal opportunity and a level-playing ground in the elections. This notification is therefore meant to alert the Commission’s Chairman to the clandestine manoeuvres of the Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa and the Senatorial Candidate of his party, who rather than a campaign, are right now in Abuja with bags of money, looted from the state to close the deal. The Delta State chapter of the All Progressive Congress, APC, has implicit confidence in the Chairman and other top echelons of the commission. We believe in you to conduct free and fair elections in Delta State. Anchored on this timely alert, you may please use your good offices to institute an immediate investigation into this petition, to ensure that agents of destabilization do not have their way.”