The crisis over Rivers State governorship election has continued to deepen as the desperation of All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders in the state to dethrone Governor Nyesom Wike mounts pressure on election administrators to manipulate the hanging governorship election results. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) appears to have lost autonomy and focus, thus, deepening apprehensions and tension in Rivers State.
The mounting tension in Rivers State culminated in 85 registered political parties under the umbrella of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), civil society groups and thousands of other concerned Rivers people taking to the streets on Wednesday to protest what they identified as clandestine moves to manipulate the outcome of the March 9 governorship election in the state.
The unified groups presented letters containing their agitations to security agencies. They drew the attention of the world to what they said is a plot by the opposition to cause violence in the state.
INEC after considering the report of electoral officials who were victims of military invasion of polling or collation centres amidst intimidation, had resolved to conclude the collation of the governorship election result which was declared inconclusive. Perhaps, protest or pressures from the ruling APC compelled the commission to suspend the collation of the results further, shifting the collation to April 2; an action not known to law or the Electoral Act, neither to the principles of electoral processes, essentially, when a country is not at war.
At the last count, PDP was leading while the APC did not sponsor any candidate because of the internal crisis in the party which led to the court restraining order over the failure of the APC to conclude its primary election within specified time.
APC leader in Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, Minister of Transport, and Director General of Buhari Presidential Campaign Organization, however, endorsed the governorship candidate of the AAC in the state governorship election. The party is unpopular in the state but coercion is being applied by the minister for the victory of the AAC candidate in the governorship election, leading to the crisis in Rivers State.