Alleged voters registration scam: Imo govt demands arrest of CUPP spokesman, Ikenga Ugochinyere

By Ori Martins

The Imo State Government has asked for immediate arrest and urgent prosecution of the spokesperson of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), Ikenga Ugochinyere for, according to it, feeding the public with lies and at the same time bringing both Governor Hope Uzodimma and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to disrepute.

Business Hallmark recalls that Ikenga had alleged last Wednesday, in Abuja, that there was a plot to use a secret suit to stop the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BIVAS) in the 2023 elections.

Addressing newsmen in Abuja, he equally alleged that there was a grand design to sack the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.

To substantiate his claims, Ikenga not only brandished bromides of the national voters register which he claimed were a part of about 10 million fake registrations registered by those behind this criminal act.

According to him, “We state that the discovery we have made goes beyond the case of double registration. It is a monumental compromise of the national voters’ register by chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“The last leg of the plot is also the sack of the INEC chairman through the courts. A plot that would be accomplished where the man insists or continues as an unbiased umpire.”

Following the allegation against it by Ikenga, the Imo State Government through the commissioner of information and strategy, Hon Declan Emelumba, has called for arrest of Ikenga while attempting to explain what happened.

He said, “Unfortunately, an investigation into the suit-claim revealed that the NBA stamp used in filing the suit belongs to a lawyer who is a very close associate of former Governor Emeka Ihedioha, the paymaster of Ugochinyere. Therefore there is no doubt as to where the whole concoction is coming from and why.

“The Imo State Government is therefore calling for the arrest and questioning of one Ikenga Ugochinyere for claiming that Voter Registration in Omuma, the home ward of Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State was inflated with fictitious names.”

“Ignoring the spurious and seditious outburst of Ugochinyere will amount to condoning criminality.”

The commissioner hence asked security agencies to “immediately arrest the said Ugochinyere to find out from him how he obtained the voters register he has been parading before the public even when the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, is still at the stage of Automated Biometric Verification of Systems, which must be concluded before an official voters register can be released to the public.

“INEC has issued an official statement on the above and has gone further to list the names of the States that entered fictitious registration of voters and Imo State is not on that list.”

Imo State Government therefore noted that “Ugochinyere must have either hacked INEC Saver or doctored documents there-from or forged the document he was brandishing.

ThIs is criminal and it is important that he should be immediately arrested for questioning.

“The security agencies have an urgent task to find out how Ugochinyere, a PDP candidate in the 2023 elections for Ideato North and South Federal Constituency came about the documents which is aimed at heating up the polity, creating tension and inciting the public.”

The government cried out that allegations were a decoy to embarrass Governor Hope Uzodimma.

It said, “By all intent and purposes, the show by Ugochinyere was hatched by PDP in Imo State to embarrass the Government in a vain attempt to diminish the shine from the hugely successful Presidential visit of Tuesday, 13th September, 2022 to Imo State.

“This is because it is difficult to explain why Ugochinyere released his tissue of lies just a day after the successful official visit of Mr. President to Imo State.

“It is only natural for PDP to express their dismay and devastation on the successful commissioning of the signature projects of the Governor by Mr. President and its inherent gains.

“The porous allegations against the Governor was to insinuate that the ‘secret court action’ was filed by an agent of Government.”