Rivers: IPAC, UK Condemn Violence, Military Interference In Polls …As PDP Demands Arrest Of FSARS Commander

The Inter-Party Advisory Council has condemned the electoral violence in Rivers and Akwa Ibom states.
IPAC, which is the umbrella body of all political parties, also condemned the role of the military in the Rivers State elections which the Independent National Electoral Commission has suspended.
The Secretary of the National Media Committee of IPAC, Mr. Akinloye Oyeniyi, said this in a statement yesterday.
IPAC also condemned the violence in Oyo State which claimed the life of a federal lawmaker.
While commending INEC for suspending the discredited Rivers State elections, IPAC called on INEC to do everything possible to be on the side of the Rivers people and not sympathetic to any politician thereby damaging its own credibility.
The council called on President Muhammadu Buhari to quickly take action on Rivers State.
The statement read in part, “Having got reports of skirmishes from our state chapters where elections were conducted, we can tell that the governorship elections witnessed very low turnout and widespread electoral violence in some states and we are really not happy about these developments.
“Apart from the unprecedented heavy military siege, uncontrollable killings, harassment of both voters and electoral officials as well as the taking over of results collation centres in Rivers State, all in a bid to upturn the people’s choice, by the police and military personnel, which have ultimately led to the suspension of the ongoing governorship election collation is a gross setback for our dear country democratically.
“It also totally will render the outcome not credible thereby lacking legitimacy. Therefore, IPAC as the recognised body of all political parties in the country, is expressing complete disapproval of these undemocratic actions; and we are calling on President Muhammadu Buhari, the Abdulsalami-led National Peace Committee as well as elder statesmen and women and well-meaning Nigerians to prevail upon all the parties involved to strictly respect the Constitution of the land, which solely resides the power to elect persons into offices in the people of Nigeria.”
Also, the UK Government has condemned military interference in the March 9 governorship and State House of Assembly elections in Rivers State.
It also warned that it was watching the situation closely and that the staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), should be allowed to do their jobs without intimidation.
“Extremely concerned by reports, including from @UKinnigeria observers, of military interference in the election process in Rivers State.
“Monitoring the situation closely. @inecng staff must be allowed to do their job in safety, without intimidation,” a tweet from @UKinNigeria read.
INEC has suspended all electoral processes in Rivers state until further notice.
In a statement yesterday, INEC explained that they took the decision due to widespread violence in the state, during the March 9 governorship and State Assembly polls.
The commission also claimed some of its staff were held hostage and materials including results sheets were destroyed.
INEC has established a fact-finding committee, to assess the situation and report back within 48 hours.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State has called for the immediate arrest and prosecution of the Commander of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS) in Rivers State, ACP Akin Fakorede over the unfortunate shooting of a lecturer with the Kenule Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic (Kenpoly), Dr. Ferry Gberegbe, who is the outgoing chairman of Kenpoly Academic Staff Union.
Also shot were Marvin Lezor Kpea-ue, Raymond Ledogo and several others at the INEC Collation Centre in Bori, headquarters of Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State, yesterday morning.
The PDP, in a statement issued in Port Harcourt, and signed by the Special Adviser to the party’s Chairman on Media and Publicity, Jerry Needam, said the F-SARS commander, in company of scores of SARS officers and military men also carted away all election materials at the Collation Centre, after shooting the men.
The PDP said Fakorede stormed the Collation Centre mid way into the collation of results from all the units in Khana Local Government Area with a bag containing fake election results, suggesting that fake results are in circulation.
While calling for the arrest and prosecution of ACP Akin Fakorede, the PDP appealed to the Inspector General of Police, Chief of Army Staff as well as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6 Division of the Army to as a matter of urgency reprimand all police officers and soldiers involved in the shooting incident and hijacking of the electoral materials at the INEC Collation Centre in Bori and other collation centres in Rivers State.
The party said the unfortunate shooting incident is a vindication of the several alarms it had raised concerning the involvement of the notorious F-SARS Commander, ACP Akin Fakorede and the military in the 2019 Elections in Rivers State.