Edo State’s INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Anubgum Onuoha, has denied allegations made by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) regarding access to electoral materials.
The dispute revolves around inspecting BVAS machines used in the September 21 governorship election.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Onuoha labeled the allegations “baseless” and “misleading,” while underscoring INEC’s commitment to openness, transparency, and integrity in all aspects of the electoral process.
The statement reads, “These allegations are baseless, misleading, and completely devoid of truth, INEC, under my leadership in Edo State, remains committed to upholding the highest standards of transparency, fairness, and integrity in all electoral processes.”
The controversy began when PDP’s Debo Ologunagba accused INEC of defying a court order. However, Onuoha has scheduled an open inspection for October 9, 2024, at 10:00 AM, ensuring compliance with legal obligations.
According to Ologunagba, “INEC’s refusal to release the materials is in brazen affront of the Order of the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal Holden at Benin City, dated 29th day of September, 2024.”
The PDP spokesperson further alleged that “compromised INEC officials used the ploy of waiting for ‘directives from above’ to allegedly allow thugs recruited by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and some unscrupulous police operatives to invade the INEC office in Edo State so as to cause confusion and frustrate the PDP from accessing these sensitive materials.”
In response to these allegations, Onuoha has taken action by scheduling an open inspection.
“The inspection of the election materials, including the BVAS devices, has been formally scheduled to take place tomorrow, October 9, 2024, at 10:00 AM at the INEC Headquarters in Edo State,” he announced.
The REC emphasized the commission’s legal obligations, stating, “The inspection of election materials is a fundamental right of all parties involved in election petitions, and it is a process that we are mandated by law to facilitate.”
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“Any political party or candidate seeking to inspect these materials has been and will continue to be granted access, provided they follow the proper procedures as outlined by the Election Tribunal and relevant legal frameworks.”
The dispute comes in the wake of the gubernatorial election where the PDP candidate, Asue Ighodalo, seeks to challenge the results.
The party had obtained a court order granting them “unfettered access” to inspect electoral materials, including BVAS machines, voter registers, ballot papers, and various electoral forms used during the election.
