The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has accused Governor Nyesom Wike of rigging the February 25 presidential election in Rivers State, against Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP).
Recall that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Bola Ahmed Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), polled the highest votes in Rivers State.
The INEC Collation Officer for the Presidential election in Rivers State, Prof Charles Teddy Adias, had on Tuesday, February 28, declared that Tinubu polled a total of 231,591 votes to beat his closest rival, LP’s Peter Obi, who scored 175,071 votes.
However, supporters of the Labour Party, especially the Obidients, had alleged that the Rivers Governor influenced the outcome of the votes in favour of Tinubu.
THEWILL reports that a delegation of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, led by its Vice President-General in Abia, Dr Kingsley Chidozie, visited Gov Wike at the Exco Chambers, Government House, Port-Harcourt, on Thursday, where the pan-Igbo group expressed sadness that Obi lost in the State.
According to a statement issued on Friday, by Ohanaeze’s National Publicity Secretary, Dr
Alex Ogbonnia, during the meeting, the group asked Wike “how an Ikwere man will, in good conscience, work against the Igbo in a presidential race where the candidacy of Peter Obi was a low hanging fruit.”
According to the statement, Ohanaeze informed Wike that the “Igbo, all over the world, are aggrieved with him, especially as the alleged rigging operations are circulating on the Internet.
Ohanaeze Ndigbo considers it a duty to confront him over the alleged widespread electoral malpractices in Rivers State against our son, Peter Obi.
“Obi would win in the metropolitan Lagos, Abuja, and several other places in the North only to record so low in Rivers State. Both the Igbo elders and youths are eager to know why he should go the extra mile to pull Obi down in Rivers State.
“Imagine what could have been the outcome of the election if he, Wike, had supported Obi during the presidential election! The Igbo are very sad and will want his explanations.”
However, Wike in response, expressed surprise that the Ohanaeze were on the fact-finding to his state.
