The Imo Resident Electoral Commissioner, Prof. Silvia Agu, has said that her powers to declare winners of the outstanding results in the state are now limited to the national headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Prof. Agu, who stated this on Tuesday in Owerri, while addressing journalists, said that the Nkwerre/Nwangele/Isu/Njaba federal constituency results are still being reviewed at the INEC headquarters in Abuja and would be announced as soon as the process is completed.
The REC, who has been under heavy criticism by opposition parties in the state after the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections and that of the March 18 House of Assembly elections in the state, for allegedly working with the ruling APC to announce candidates of the party winners of the elections, debunked the accusations, insisting that she would never compromise her faith as a member of the Scripture Union.
She said, “I have heard so many things about me since after the general elections. Some said I conspired with the government of Imo state to rig the Imo elections. But a clear conscience fears no accusations. I am a member of the Scripture Union, and I can never compromise my faith for any reason. I am also a Knight of the church. So I have come to do the right thing.
“We have places that were marred with irregularities in the last elections and were declared inconclusive. They include the Mbaitoli/Ikeduru federal constituency and that of Ahiazu-Mbaise state constituency. Njaba’s results as part of the federal constituency are still being reviewed in Abuja. I have no powers of my own, given the situation on the ground, to declare results at the moment. At this point, Abuja has the power to decide who emerges winner after reviewing the results.
“The Mbaitoli/Ikeduru supplementary election has been scheduled for the 15th of April, 2023. There are some polling units in the area where elections did not take place.”
Asked why 3 out of the 26 APC candidates who were declared winners of the Imo state House of Assembly election, were not issued Certificate of Returns by INEC, she said the results for Isu, Ideato-North, and Ideato-South state Constituency were still being reviewed as well.
