•Calls for redeployment of Lagos REC, Agbaje, over genocidal, ethnic cleansing incitement targeting Ndigbo

By PAMELA EBOH, Awka

Ahead of the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections in Nigeria, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), has raised 13 critical questions for the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, relating to the 2022/2023 Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) distribution.

It also sought to know the final status of the National Register of Voters ahead of the country’s all-important Feb 25, 2023 Presidential Poll.

The questions, which were contained in an open letter addressed to the Commission on Monday, February 6, 2023, include;

"What is the State-by-State breakdown of the PVCs distributed across the country by INEC between 12th December 2022 and 5th February 2023?

"How many of the 20 miliion uncollected PVCs since 2019 (as disclosed on 31st May, 2022, by Mohammed Haruna, INEC’s National Commissioner for FCT, Nasarawa, Plateau and Kaduna) and 9.5 million uncollected PVCs since 2022 were distributed across the country as at 5th February 2023?

"How many of the newly printed 4 million PVCs for registered citizens who newly transferred their PVCs were distributed across the country on state-by-state basis as at 5th February 2023?

"What is the total remaining number of the uncollected PVCs since 2019 and those of 2023 in the 36 States and the FCT as at 5th February 2023?

"What is the ethno-religious and gender percentage of the distributed PVCs and their remainder as at 5th February 2023?

"How many PVCs belonging to the registered children of underage and illegal migrants were distributed by INEC across the 36 States and the FCT especially in Kano, Kastina, Kaduna, Sokoto, Kebbi, Jigawa, Zamfara, Bauchi, Yobe, Borno, Adamawa and Niger States as at 5th February 2023?

While noting that INEC had on 6th January, 2023, through its National Commissioner on Voter Education (Festus Okoye Esquire) on the Channels TV’s Politics Today, admitted that “INEC is cleaning up underage voters from its record, Intersociety queried, "What is the fate or status of the estimated eight million children of underage and two million illegal migrants presently stocked and legitimized by the Commission in the National Register of Voters as at 5th February 2023 ahead of the February 25, 2023, Presidential poll?

"There are also estimated four million fake names compiled from booklets of passport photographs, posters of dead persons and fake names and images from outside the country presently stocked in the National Register of Voters: What is the fate or status of such fake or fictitious names as at 5th February, 2023, ahead of the February 25, 2023 Presidential poll?

"What is the actual number of registered voters or the final number of registered voters with which INEC is going to conduct the 25th February, 2023 Presidential Poll?

"What is the actual number of registered voters with PVCs as at 5th February, 2023 ahead of the February 25, 2023 Presidential Poll and their state-by-state breakdown?

"What is the fate or status of the estimated 10 million compromised PVCs and their VINs as at 5th February, 2023 ahead of the Feb 25, 2023 Presidential poll; as admitted by INEC on 12th December, 2022 through its National Commissioner in charge of FCT, Nasarawa, Plateau and Kaduna, Mohammed Haruna?"

Other questions go thus: "What is the fate or status of the estimated 6 million stolen or diverted PVCs or more that disappeared from INEC custody regarding the February 25, 2023 Presidential poll?

"What concrete measures are being put in place by INEC to ensure that the deployment of IReV, BVAS and PVC accreditation/voting technologies, processes and procedures are done across board in the 36 States and the FCT on February 25, 2023 Presidential poll without discriminatory recourse to dual policies of sticking to or insisting on IReV, BVAS and PVC accreditation/voting technologies, processes and procedures in the South and substantially collapsing same and allowing manual voting in the North.”

The group, in the letter signed by, Emeka Umeagbalasi, Criminologist/Researcher and Board Chairman at Intersociety, Chinwe Umeche Esq, Head, Democracy and Good Governance Program at Intersociety, and made available to News Express said that the urgent letter was part of its priceless advocacy geared towards deepening democracy, including inclusive election and popular participation in credible democratic process in Nigeria or any part thereof.

It added: "It is the uncompromising position of ours that ‘the gateway into popular, credible and inclusive election, especially presidential poll, is massive enfranchisement by INEC of all citizens of voting age which the Commission must do without discrimination as to ethnicity, religion, place of birth, gender and class of the citizens of voting age.

"Negatively speaking, ‘the gateway into massive poll rigging, especially in Nigeria’s February 25, 2023, presidential poll is massive disenfranchisement of citizens of voting age on the grounds of their ethnic identity, religion, place of work, gender and class.

"From all indications, Your Commission has earned notoriety in the latter.

"Intersociety, therefore, minces no word to the effect that under Your Commission’s watch, millions of citizens of voting age of full blood Nigerian citizenship have been denied voting right by not being captured as voters and issued with permanent voters’ cards. "

Intersociety stressed that under INEC’s Watch, especially ahead of the February 25, 2023 Presidential Poll, there have been massive and unchecked reports of personal data theft and destruction, diversion and impersonation of the registered citizens and citizens-under-registration’s PVCs or personal data supplied to INEC.

The group maintained that tens of millions were denied registration and issuance of PVCs, particularly non-Muslims of South-East and South-South residencies were also denied registration and massively disenfranchised, adding that large numbers of citizens of the two regions live outside their regions where they reside or work.

"Contrarily, citizens of voting age, especially the non-Christians in the North and other parts of the country are so maximally captured as registered voters and issued with PVCs that millions of children of underage and illegal Muslim migrants sharing same faith with them are sought after and registered as “voters” and issued with PVCs.

"Consequently sir, INEC must provide answers to the following 13 critical public interest questions.”

In another development, Intersociety has called for the redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Lagos State for alleged ethnic incitement against Ndigbo resident in the state.

Part of the groups sub-titled: "Lagos REC, Agbaje Must Leave the State Over Incitement To Genocide, Etc Against Ndigbo In Lagos,” the group said:

"Following widespread outcries that greeted the brazen partisanship of the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Lagos State, Olusegun Agbaje, over his anti South-East or Igbo genocidal comments/PVC posture, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) is strongly calling for immediate removal of the REC. Live and verifiable video clips have in few days gone by saturated the social media spaces showing systematic and orchestrated plots by the REC to deprive the Nigerian citizens of South-East resident in Lagos their PVCs and rights to participate and vote in the February 25, 2023 Presidential poll.

"Apart from genocidally referring to them as “South-East migrants,” the REC did not hide his hatred of the South-Easteners residents in Lagos by denying them PVCs under frivolous circumstances.

"As if these were not enough, the REC ended up vicariously, if not directly, by inciting native residents preparatory to unleashing “Election Day and Post-Election Day” ethnic cleansing against the South-East residents in the State. He also hatefully lied unpardonably by describing the decades-old South-East residents in Lagos as “those that migrated and settled in Lagos to escape insecurity in the South-East.”

"It must be remembered that not long ago, batches of carefully sorted out PVCs with ethno-religious marks bearing Igbo and other Eastern names were carted away from INEC custody and scattered and dumped in large numbers inside gutters and streets along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. In 2015 and 2019, organized group violence was unleashed on Igbo citizens resident in Lagos by loyalists of the leading political actors in Lagos for conscientiously voting for candidates of their choice.

"In the 2019 Presidential poll, Igbo properties, including homes and market stores, as well as polling units in their areas, were targeted, attacked and wantonly destroyed, including being razed or set ablaze; and as if these were not enough, millions of South-East voters were denied PVCs by INEC under the Lagos REC in the just conducted PVC distribution in the State," the group stated.

Intersociety said that the totality of all the action was tantamount to ethnic profiling with intent to instigate incitement to genocide and ethnic cleansing against the South-East residents in Lagos State.

The group boldly stated that the Lagos REC was unfit to continue as “Lagos REC and must be redeployed as a matter of uttermost immediacy,” saying that INEC must also thoroughly investigate REC Olusegun Agbaje as well as look into massive denial of PVCs to South-Easterners in Lagos State, including Igbo residents in Oshodi-Isolo, Mafoluku-Oke Afa, Ijora Badia, Amukoko, Alaba, Surulere, Orile, Itire, Ijesha, Cele, Okota, Ajugunle, Olodi Apapa, Coconut, Ojokoro-Ijaye, Agbara, Ojo, Okoko, Satellite Town, FESTAC, Mushin and Ojuelegba, among others.

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