APC: Rivers PDP lawmakers deceitful

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as deceitful the petition to President Muhammadu Buhari by the 16 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers from Rivers State on the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, saying those obstructing  justice are trying to play the victim.

In a statement in Abuja yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said despite the tribunal’s order, the Rivers PDP and the  INEC colluded to ensure that the Rivers APC neither gets the certified true copies of requested documents nor inspect materials used for the election.

‘’Because we are a law-abiding party, unlike the PDP and their INEC collaborators, we reported this to the tribunal, which said it was not up to it to enforce its earlier order. This was why we reported to the security agencies, especially the Police and the Department of State Services (DSS).

‘’Although the inspector general of Police intervened to ensure the tribunal’s order  was carried out, the Rivers INEC still refused. This was why the DSS, seeking to prevent a breakdown of law and order resulting from the intransigence of the Rivers INEC, prevailed upon them to carry out the tribunal’s order. Despite these efforts, the order has still not been complied with,’’ it said.

APC also denied that the military was being used to intimidate anyone, saying the party only subpoenaed the soldiers, who played a major role in the elections not only in Rivers but in the Niger Delta, in view of the violence unleashed by the PDP on APC supporters before, during and after the elections.

‘’Nigerians can now see there is no truth in the petition by the Rivers PDP federal lawmakers that the DSS and the military were being used to obstruct justice. What the petitioners are seeking to do is to pull the wool over the eyes of Nigerians,’’ the party said.

It said it was not a secret that the PDP allegedly rigged the elections not only in Rivers but also in Akwa Ibom, where the party and the state INEC had also refused to allow the APC access to electoral materials, and where indeed vital documents were allegedly destroyed.

‘’Knowing full well that they allegedly cooked up the figures, and that their figures cannot stand serious scrutiny, the Rivers PDP has resorted to using all tricks in the books to delay the proceedings at the tribunal, hoping that by so doing, the statutory 180 days we have to prove our case will expire.

‘’It was for the same reason that they (Rivers PDP and INEC) tried to goad us to file contempt charges against them for refusing to obey the tribunal’s order. They had hoped that by filing such charges, valuable time would have been wasted,’’ APC said.

The party urged the 16 PDP lawmakers to tell their people to stop obstructing justice by allowing the Rivers APC access to election materials, instead of writing frivolous petitions and blaming the victims for their lawlessness.

‘’The PDP has always been a lawless party. This is why they think others are like them. In pursuing our petition at the tribunal, we do not seek any favour beyond what the law prescribes. But we will not fold our arms and allow anyone to bury us under the ruble of injustice. We will use all constitutional and legal means to ensure that justice prevails,’’ it warned.

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