Dr Lawrence Ekwok, Chairman of the Cross River State Chapter of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, has called for the cancellation of elections in areas where some people were not allowed to vote or where BVAS, ballot boxes, and other election materials were carted away or destroyed by political thugs.
He announced the announcement in a statement delivered Saturday night, following the Presidential and National Assembly elections.
“Other regions where elections should be invalidated and rerun should include polling units or states where vote papers did not have the emblem of some political parties,” he says.
“Doing this will avoid possible protests from individuals who feel disenfranchised and will also discourage thuggery of any type.
If this is done, the eventual winner of the election will be certain of possessing the mandate of the Nigerian people, while also preventing thuggery and impunity in future elections.”
Ekwok also denounced a system in which regular Nigerians publicly threaten other citizens and urge them to return home if they do not vote for a specific candidate, claiming that “nobody is more Nigerian than other Nigerians.”
He urged INEC to do all necessary to persuade Nigerians that the commission is sincerely dedicated to holding free, fair, and credible elections.
Ekwok also urged Cross Riverians, particularly members of the PFN Cross River State, to vote in large numbers in the March 11 governorship and House of Assembly elections.
He also appealed for the results to be uploaded as soon as possible to avoid the suspicion that INEC personnel are attempting to tamper with the results.
