Ohuabunwa Kicks as Kalu Claims Victory

Contrary to the reported victory of a former governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor Kalu, in Saturday’s National Assembly election, his opponent and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Senator Mao Ohuabunwa, representing Abia North senatorial district has insisted that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was yet to make any official return for Abia North senatorial seat.

The returning officer for the senatorial district, Dr. Charles Anumudu, announced the result on Monday at the Abia North collation centre in Ohafia, revealing that Kalu polled 30,203 votes to defeat his closest rival Ohuabunwa, who garnered 20,801 votes.

But Ohuabunwa, at a news conference in Abuja alleged that Kalu, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and his alleged co-travellers in INEC only declared himself winner with results that never emanated from the polling units contrary to the electoral act as amended.

The lawmaker alleged that the returning officer never returned Kalu as duly elected, adding that he only announced figures substantially different from results collated at the various polling units across Abia North.

According to him, “INEC operatives in their haste to arrive at a pre-determined conclusion manipulated the electoral process to the shock of all well-meaning patriots who believe in democracy. In this respect, it is tragic that INEC could conduct an election without the issuance of form EC40G, a form used to capture cancelled votes and places where there was no voting. “In the circumstances of the above, we demand that the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Abia State should direct the returning officer of the Abia North senatorial election to make the requisite declaration in accordance with the dictates of Rule 17E(e) of the guidelines for the conduct of elections issued by INEC by cancelling the elections completely.