Election Results Have Been Compromised, Says Labour Party

Labour Party (LP) Presidential Campaign Council has rejected the election results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), stating that the process has been compromised.

Speaking at a press conference, the director general of the Labour Party Campaign Council, Prof Akin Osuntokun, said they reject the result and won’t accept it.

“The president promised Nigerians free and fair elections with the passage of the new Electoral Act and indeed has repeated this promise multiple times.

“The INEC chairman also came before Nigerians and the Global community to promise free and fair elections and repeatedly reiterated its readiness to conduct the elections.

“What has become glaring is that none of these promises have been kept. All the promises made about deploying a fail-safe system anchored on BVAS were broken.

“The internet and social media is awash with videos and photographic evidence of the pervasive violence and attacks that were visited on Nigerians with some attacks still on-going across the country as we speak,” he said.

He said the evidence of collusion between INEC and the security forces to subvert the will of the people are too numerous to be detailed here, adding that the INEC guidelines on the conduct of the elections were extensively breached and INEC has evidently been very reluctant to make the necessary adjustment to remedy the situation.

He added that contrary to the publicly advertised guidelines for the conduct of the elections, they are convinced that the processes leading to the results have been severely compromised and consequently, they regret to state that they have lost confidence in the results being collated and being announced.

“Nigerians have inundated us with calls and protests over INEC’s non-compliance with provisions of the electoral guidelines and the obvious manipulations of the election results.

“We hereby call on INEC to suspend further announcement of the results, and follow its own guidelines or completely cancel the entire election and make plans for another election with strict compliance with the stipulated laws and guidelines.

“We ask the international community to walk their talk in Nigeria, and cease to condone the multiple evils being perpetrated in our country by the rulers of Nigeria. There cannot be one standard for Nigeria, and another for the rest of the world, “the Labour Party said while thanking Nigerians for their support for their candidates.

“And we assure you all that your mandate shall not be surrendered to a desperate gaggle of failed rulers, who have brought nothing but ruination on our dear country.

“We urge that Nigerians remain peaceful and law abiding, whilst assured that we are doing everything within the law to protect your sacred mandate,” the party said.