The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State has accused First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate, Chief Nyesome Wike, Deputy Governor Tele Ikuru, and Minister of Sports Tammy Danagogo of intensifying efforts in the past 24 hours to rig the on-going governorship and State House of Assembly elections in favour of PDP.

“Reports available to us confirm that Rivers PDP, the Police and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have not changed their tactics of rigging all elections in Rivers State. The strategy adopted to cart away INEC materials and writing results in favour of PDP in the presidential and National Assembly elections of March 28th are sadly being replicated in the gubernatorial and State Assembly election of today, April 11th,” Rivers State APC Chairman, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya, said in a statement issued this morning in Port Harcourt. According to Ikanya:

*The DPO Rumuepirikom Police Station early this morning aided the movement of INEC election materials at the RAC covering wards 12 and 13 in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area situate at Ola-Nu-da Model Primary School opposite School of Arts and Science. She escorted a Passat wagon into the RAC and carted away the original materials, shooting and chasing away APC agents.

*Also early this morning, a special police unit drafted to the RAC covering wards 9, 10 and 11 situate at St John’s Model Primary School Rumueme beat up and chased our people away to allow Anugbum Onuoha (cousin to the PDP guber candidate) to come in with a carton containing some electoral materials and took away original results.

*PDP militiamen operating in a gunboat have seized electoral materials in Akuku Toru Local Government Area.

*Chief Wike’s fake police are currently thumb-printing ballot papers and have threatened to kill any APC agent that raises an eyebrow. The game plan is to announce the results through social media, which will tally with what they have already filled with INEC as Rivers State gubernatorial election result.

*Thugs working for Mr. Michael-West, a House of Assembly candidate on the platform of PDP, have bombed the residence of Rivers State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Mrs. Joeba West, in Buguma, Asari Toru Local Government Area. The thugs numbering over 20 shot sporadically and threw Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) into the commissioner’s house, leaving it badly damaged. The whereabouts of Mrs. Joeba West remain uncertain.

*In Ikuru Town, Andoni Local Government Area, PDP supporters shot all day on Friday. Earlier, there were allegations that Deputy Governor Tele Ikuru, who recently defected to PDP, had moved in scores of ammunition and militia men prior to the elections.

*In Gokana Local Government, five men in military camouflage uniform and fake identity cards were arrested and handed over to the police at Kpor Divisional Police headquarters. However, there are fears that DCP John Amadi, known to be working with the PDP, is working to get them released.

*President Goodluck Jonathan’s wife, Patience, has arrived Okrika, her birthplace, yesterday to personally take charge of undemocratic efforts to secure ‘victory’ for PDP in the Governorship/House of Assembly elections. Though she was expected to have been in Otuoke with her husband, Jonathan, to vote in the House of Assembly election, Mrs. Jonathan chose to stay back in Rivers State to coordinate effort to rig the governorship election in favour of her candidate, Chief Ezebuwon Nyesome Wike. Mrs. Jonathan, “doing her last dance”, in the words of an Okrika source, is reported to have taken steps to capture every vote in Okrika and Ogu/Bolo, after which she will move to the INEC office in Port Harcourt to supervise collation and the declaration of results.

*Nigeria’s Minister of Sports, Dr. Tammy Danagogo, yesterday unleashed a band of vicious soldiers on residents and possible voters in his hometown, Abonnema, headquarters of Akuku Toru Local Government, in brazen disrespect to all known principles of democracy, decorum and rights of the people. The Sports Minister, a chieftain of PDP, moved from house-to-house from 9.00am, hounding and brutalising known APC members.

*APC party agents in all 5 polling units in Kalio Ama (Ward 9), Okrika were abducted out of their units by PDP militants while police men on duty watched helplessly. Spirited efforts were made by other APC stalwarts to trace, locate and release them where they were being held. By the time they were restored to their duty posts, electoral materials had been hijacked and taken away by PDP members in all the units.

*No security presence in ward 7, Okrika. Meanwhile, Samuel Okoko, a PDP member is openly patrolling with police and one Philemon Atelibo moving around with over 20 cult boys. APC supporters are being attacked in Ward 5, Okrika.

*In Borokiri in Port Harcourt a policeman has been shot dead. Unconfirmed report has it that the Presidency has given order to re-deploy the AIG Ogunshakin immediately for assisting to ensure peace in Rivers State which did not go well with Dame Patience Jonathan.

*Asari Toru RAKS burnt down by irate PDP youths after stealing the results sheets.

*Original electoral materials are hijacked and where there are available, fake materials are used with hope that they will use the original materials to fine-tune the rigging plot by PDP and INEC.

*In Idu Community in ONELGA, Hon. Clever, the APC Youth Leader, was shot and killed by the PDP hoodlums with scores of APC members in other areas have also being killed.

“Rivers APC unreservedly condemns this rape of democracy by people who consider themselves to be above the law. We appeal to the military, the Police High Command and other security agencies involved in election duties in Rivers State to intervene urgently and ensure that the elections are conducted in accordance with relevant laws and that the people’s will prevails at the end of the day. Anything to the contrary would be an invitation to chaos,” Dr. Ikanya said.

•Photo shows Dame Patience Jonathan.

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