*Says money induced INEC report on state’s elections
*Added Wike armed thugs to teeth
“Governor Wike out of his desperation to win the governorship election conducted on the 9th of March, recruited thousands of youths under the aegis of Neighborhood Watch Corps to carry out violence in the state which they actually did during the elections. Not only were Wike’s thugs called neighborhood watch , armed to the teeth but clothed in fake army uniforms which made them to be mistaken for real soldiers.”
Barely 24 hours after Nigerian Army ventilated its anger with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for covering up generally believed atrocities of Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Nyesom Wike, during the last elections particularly gubernatorial and state assembly elections in the state, fresh revelations have come vindicating the Army as a senator from the state said the governor actually militarized elections and not the Army as being reported by INEC.
According to the Senator, Governor Wike chothed his thugs, whom he formed into a Neighbourhood Watch Corps to carry out violence in the state, in fake Army uniforms and armed them to the teeth in a way that they were mistaken to be soldiers of the Nigerian military.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on which platform Wike stood in the governorship election in Rivers State, has been leading an inciting campaigns against the Nigerian Army upon which the INEC last week Friday slammed the Army for militarization of the state elections.
Also, it was gathered, this PDP’s position has formed the basis upon which some foreign elements, now revealed to be PDP’s foreign collaborators including the United States Department of State, United Nations observers, have concocted what former Senate President Ebute described as poorly researched work and reports done against Nigeria on anti-corruption, human rights and security.
A new angle has further been added to the alleged militarisation of the 2019 general elections with Senator Andrew Uchendu ( APC Rivers East), declaring that Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, militarised the just ended general elections in Rivers State and not the Army or military as being erroneously claimed.
Senator Uchendu who stated this in Abuja on Thursday while fielding questions from journalists on the crisis trailing the 2019 general elections in the state, particularly, the yet to be concluded governorship and State House of Assembly elections, alleged that Governor Wike’s armed thugs in military uniform , carried out most of the killings and violence acts that took place in the state during the elections.
According to him, Governor Wike on March 9 when the governorship election held, stormed Obio-akpor local government collation center with over 200 armed thugs who shot an Army Captain by name, Salami, to death and injured many others, all in the process of falsifying already collated results from the ward levels.
He further stated that Governor Wike worked hand in glove with the Resident Electoral Commissioner ( REC) in the state , Obo Effanga , to manipulate the election results in favour of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP).
He said: “All the narratives out there including the one said by Senator Dino Melaye ( PDP Kogi West), on the floor of the Senate on alleged militarisation of the last general elections in Rivers State, were nothing but falsehood. sponsored by Governor Wike.
“Governor Wike out of his desperation to win the governorship election conducted on the 9th of March, recruited thousands of youths under the aegis of Neighborhood Watch Corps to carry out violence in the state which they actually did during the elections.
“Not only were Wike’s thugs called neighborhood watch , armed to the teeth but clothed in fake army uniforms which made them to be mistaken for real soldiers.
“If those who killed and maimed during the elections were soldiers in the true of it, how come that soldiers themselves were shot during the elections three of whom were officers still in critical conditions at the intensive care unit of the University of Portharcourt Teaching Hospital ( UPTH).”
But when reminded that the Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC) in its report, indicted the military and not armed thugs on the election violence, he said Wike’s money and propaganda influenced the INEC report.
“It is very clear that since INEC REC in Rivers State has been bought over by Wike with about N500milliin, there is no way INEC in Abuja can escape such contamination.
“But nonetheless, concerned River people are watching INEC on how it will get itself out of the quagmire it put itself because already known results from the election shows that the gubernatorial candidate of African Action Congress ( AAC), was far, far leading Governor Wike of the PDP”, he added .
