A cloud of uncertainty now hangs over the eligibility of Chief Willie Obiano, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate in the Anambra Governorship poll, to contest the election, as his name is missing from INEC\u2019s voters\u2019 register.<\/p>\n
Obiano was declared winner of the controversial election by Professor James Epoke, the Chief Returning Officer of the Anambra Governorship election<\/p>\n
Instructively, INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega had while defending the controversial and highly flawed Anambra Governorship Election, noted that the online and telephone platforms were tools voters should have used to ascertain whether their names were on the voters\u2019 register. He suggested that had Tony Nwoye, the PDP Governorship candidate used that \u2018voter status confirmation\u2019 search engine, he would have saved himself the embarrassment of not finding his name on the voters\u2019 register.<\/p>\n
A check on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) voters register made available on the official website of the Commission showed that Obiano is not a registered voter. The register is provided to enable prospective voters to check their status on the register.<\/p>\n
When Obiano\u2019s data is inputted into INEC\u2019s \u201cVoter Verification Platform,\u201d the search engine states as follows: \u201cVoter Not Found: The information you entered is incorrect. Please check that you chose the right state, and your VIN and Last Name are spelt correctly and try again.\u201d Even when the data is repeatedly and correctly entered, the same result is returned by the search engine. The format for checking a voter\u2019s status, as stated by INEC, is to input the voter\u2019s state, last name and five digits of the voter\u2019s Voter Identification Number (VIN).<\/p>\n
Curiously, this does not affect other voters, as their data is easily generated.<\/p>\n
There have been serious controversies on the status of Obiano, as he has been accused of multiple registrations. Obiano had registered at Ifako\/Soluyi Ward 2, Polling Unit 060 – Junction of Ramot Oluwakemi Street, Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos State. His Voter Identification Number (VIN) is 90F5B12B01296204172 while his serial number on the Voters\u2019 Register is 416.\u201d He subsequently registered twice in Anambra State. Documents had emerged last week showing that while the APGA candidate was issued a Voter Identification Number (VIN) 0F5B12B88377091121 at 2:18 pm on August 21, 2013, Obiano was again issued with another voter identification number 90F5B15E7D378200332 at exactly 10:25 am on September 3, 2013 at different polling units.<\/p>\n
However, the sudden \u201cdisappearance\u201d of Obiano\u2019s registration data barely 24 hours after the APC blew the lid on the Commission\u2019s falsification of its online voters\u2019 register to erase evidence of Obiano\u2019s multiple registration may not be unconnected with further efforts to cover up the falsification.<\/p>\n
But INEC\u2019s conduct has incontrovertibly confirmed Obiano\u2019s multiple registrations. At any rate, the Commission is yet to also disable its telephone confirmation platform which still generates results conclusively showing Obiano\u2019s multiple registration status. The platform generates results by a voter sending an SMS with his State, Last name, last five digits of his Voter Identification Number to 08171646879.<\/p>\n
A search of the Voters\u2019 Register uploaded by INEC on its official website indicated that while Obiano\u2019s third registration at Otuocha Ward I, Polling Unit 004, Eri Primary School 1 of Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State was left intact, the Commission fraudulently altered its online Voters Register in Obiano\u2019s second registration at Anambra State.<\/p>\n
The result of the search for \u201cOtuocha Ward I\u201d showed that Obiano registered as \u201cObiano, Maduabuchi Willie\u201d at Eri Primary School 1 Polling Unit on 3rd September, 2013. While the Polling Unit Code was 04\/03\/11\/004, the Registration Area\/Ward was recorded as Otuocha I. The Voter Identification Number of 90F5B15E7D378200332 also remained the same.<\/p>\n
But INEC attempted to cover up Obiano\u2019s initial registration in Anambra State on August 21, 2013 when INEC altered its online voters\u2019 register to transfer Obiano\u2019s registration to Abia State. However, most of the other particulars as earlier revealed remained the same. For example, the name and gender of the registrant were recorded as \u201cObiano, Maduabuchi Willie and \u201cMale\u201d respectively. The Occupation, Time of Registration, and Polling Unit Code were recorded as \u201cOther,\u201d \u201c2013-08-21\u201d and \u201c01\/01\/01\/001.\u201d These entries tally with the Voter\u2019s Card issued to Obiano in Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State at 2:18 pm on 21st August, 2013. The Voter Identification Number (VIN) of 90F5B12B88377091121 remained the same.<\/p>\n
Aside from assigning Obiano\u2019s voter\u2019s card to Abia State, the \u201cnew\u201d voter\u2019s card now records Obiano as having registered at \u201cRailway Quarters \u2013 Railway Quarters I\u201d Polling Unit while the Registration Area\/Ward is recorded as \u201cEziama\u201d in Aba North Local Government Area of Abia State.<\/p>\n
But in its hurry to cover up the fraud, INEC officials forgot that ONLY Anambra State Voters\u2019 Register is currently uploaded on the INEC website. This is even admitted by INEC itself in its directions to voters seeking to use the online verification facility. It states: \u201cYou can check your voter status by entering your details in the form on this page. You can also check your voter status by sending an SMS with your State, Last name, Voter Identification Number (VIN) to 081-7164-6879,\u201d adding that \u201cOnly Anambra State (voters\u2019 register) is available. More states will be added soon.\u201d At any rate, attempts to input any other state are promptly rejected by INEC\u2019s server, as only \u201cAnambra\u201d is highlighted. It is therefore obvious that the mutilated entry could only have been originally entered in the Anambra State voters\u2019 register.<\/p>\n
Also, in the manual register, evidence of Obiano\u2019s multiple registration has been deleted in the new copies of voters\u2019 register issued to
\nparticipating political parties. While Obiano\u2019s name appeared at serial numbers 246 and 247 in the original register, the entry at serial number 247 has now been deleted, such that the number is now taken up by one Mrs. Obiefuna, Paulina.<\/p>\n
Section 12(2) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) provides that \u201cA person shall not register in more than one registration centre or register more than once in the same registration centre.\u201d Section 12(3) enacts asfollows: \u201cA person who contravenes the provision of subsection (2) of this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding N100,000 or imprisonment.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is now obvious that INEC is working hand in gloves with Obiano and the APGA leadership in Anambra State to cover up this electoral fraud and ensure that Obiano is not disqualified and prosecuted for multiple registration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A cloud of uncertainty now hangs over the eligibility of Chief Willie Obiano, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate in the Anambra Governorship poll, to contest the election, as…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19573,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n