Gov. Nyesom Wike
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers state has alleged that the sabotaging of electoral process in the state by the police is a declaration of war on the people.
In a broadcast concerning the Port Harcourt State Constituency III Bye-Election, whihc was inconclusive, Wike accused the police and armed APC thugs of disrupting it.
He said: “The consistent sabotage of the electoral process by the Police amounts to a declaration of war against the people of Rivers State and their solemn rights to freely and fairly choose their leaders and representatives.
“Clearly there are dangerous times ahead but we must not give in to intimidation lest we loose our liberties and become slaves in our own land.
“Against the backdrop it is up to the people of Rivers State to choose the option that will serve their interest.”
He said: “As we had feared, the Police failed us completely once again and negated all that they promised. Instead of providing security for voters and INEC officials the Police brazenly colluded with political thugs of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to subvert the democratic process and denied the people of Port Harcourt Constituency III their rights to free, fair and credible elections.
“Confirmed reports from the field indicated that INEC promptly and rightly distributed elections materials to all the polling units within a recorded time.
“However, while voting was underway, armed thugs from the APC led by the State’s factional Chairman, Mr. Flag Ojukaye Amachree moved freely from one polling unit to the other, violently assaulted voters and INEC officials and carted away election materials, including smart card readers and ballot boxes.”