hold General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6 Division of the Nigerian Army,
Major General Jamil Sarham and the Commander State Anti-Robbery Squad
(SARS) ACP. Akin Victor Fakorede responsible for any violence during the
Presidential and National Assembly elections in Rivers State on Saturday.
In a press conference on Wednesday in Port Harcourt, Leader of the
Riverine Ijaw Communities and Former Deputy Governor of Rivers State, Engr
Tele Ikuru stated the two officers are working with the Minister of
Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi to unleash violence on Rivers
State.
The Press Conference was titled: “THE PLAN BY THE GENERAL OFFICER
COMMANDING 6 DIVISION, NIGERIA ARMY, MAJOR GENERAL JAMIL SARHAM AND THE
COMMANDER STATE ANTI-ROBBERY SQUAD (SARS) ACP. AKIN FAKOREDE TO RIG THE
GENEREAL ELECTIONS IN THE RIVERINE COMMUNITIES OF RIVERS STATE”.
He said : “Confirmed reports also show that Major General Sarham and ACP
Akin Fakorede have penciled for arrest and detain the Council and Party
Chairmen of all the eight Local Government Councils and other principal
PDP leaders in our communities until after the Presidential election.
“ACP Akin Fakorede is not new to playing such ignoble roles in Rivers
State elections. He did it in 2016 against the PDP during the National and
State House of Assembly re-run elections and was accordingly indicted by
INEC for his criminal actions. ACP Akin Fakorede who was posted along with
others for election duties to Bornu State has now been surreptitiously
returned to Rivers State despite his infamous antecedent as an unrepentant
election rigger.
“As the facts have shown Major General Sarham and Mr. Akin Fakorede are
openly sympathetic to the APC and pathologically biased against the PDP”.
Engr Tele Ikuru added: “Indeed, we forced to conclude that they are
card-carrying members of the APC and, therefore, are not and cannot be
expected to be neutral in the discharge of election duties in which their
party, the APC is directly involved
“The fact that we are a peaceful people is not in doubt and we do not want
anything to upset the prevailing peace and sense of security in our
communities and Local Government Areas.
“We are therefore happy with the promise by INEC to ensure that the 2019
general elections are peaceful, free, fair and credible. But it is
becoming increasingly difficult for us or anybody else to believe that
this promise would stand with the evolving partisan disposition and
involvement of the military and the police in the administration of the
elections in Rivers State.
“We are constrained therefore to call on the international community,
especially the United States, Britain and the European Union to bring to
bear, maximum pressure on INEC and the Federal Government to allow
peaceful, free, fair and credible elections in our communities”.
The Riverine Ijaw Communities said the purpose of the press conference is
to draw the attention of Nigerians and the international community to the
evolving plan by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6 Division of the
Nigerian Army Major General Jamil Sarham and the Commander State
Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) ACP. Akin Victor Fakorede to destabilize, rig
and abort the peaceful conduct of the 2019 elections in the riverine
communities of Rivers State.
He said: ” As we all know the Presidential and National Assembly
elections have been rescheduled to take place nationwide on the 23rd of
February 2019 while the 9th of March 2019 is for the Governorship and
State House of Assembly elections.
“The All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government and the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC) have repeatedly promised to ensure
that these elections peaceful will be free, fair and credible.
“However, while we are committed to the success of these elections, some
senior security officers, particularly, the above named duo are
constituting serious stumbling block to the realization of this exercise
in our riverine communities of Rivers State. As security officers we
expected General Sarham and Mr. Akin Fakorede to be neutral, honest and
fair in the discharge of their election duties to the nation.
“This is not the case as both men have profoundly signed on to the
evolving plan by the Amaechi-led APC to destabilize, rig and scuttle the
peaceful conduct of the elections”.