Linus Oota, Lafia
The Senator representing Nasarawa South at the upper legislative chamber, Solomon Adokwe, has explained that the refusal of President Muhammadu Buhari to assent to electoral bill shows he plans to rig the 2019 presidential election.
Adokwe stated this yesterday at the People’s Democratic Party ( PDP ) state secretariat, Lafia where he submitted his nomination form to return to the senate for the fourth time in 2019.
He said that the provisions in the electoral bill provided for a free, fair and credible elections, adding that the 2015 elections that brought the president to office was marred by irregularities.
The Senate committee chairman on information said the refusal of the president to assent to the bill would affect the 2019 elections.
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“It will affect the elections because the amendment that we have proposed are such that will enhance free, fair and transparent elections. It makes sure that the card reader remain the only source of accreditation.
“Once you do that, there is no need of incidence form; in 2015, the president was rigged in by virtue of incidence form and he still wants to benefit from that same method again. Every country is going electronic and Nigeria cannot be an exception
“In 2014, it was the APC that was clamouring for card reader. When we debated extensively in the legislature, it was APC that practically stampeded us into using the card reader because INEC as it was then constituted had already planned a systematic way of rigging. They knew that they were going to have a card reader and later discarded it.
“Prof. Jega blind-folded everybody into believing that he is the only straightforward chairman of INEC. He allowed incidence form to be used where he knew APC would win election and never allowed the rest of the country to use incidence form except card reader until later in the day when elections had been won and lost.”