YPP boycotts Anambra LG poll over violence, irregularities claims

The Young Progressives Party has said it boycotted the ongoing Anambra State local government elections over allegations of widespread violence and electoral irregularities, as well as alleged gunshots in Otuocha, headquarters of Anambra East Local Government Area of the state.

Anambra East LGA was the only one of the 21 LGAs where an opposition political party fielded candidates for the election, with the YPP contesting the chairmanship and councillorship positions.

Other opposition political parties in the state did not field candidates for any position in the 21 LGAs, while the YPP fielded candidates for the chairmanship and councillorship positions in Anambra East LGA across the 15 wards.

As a result, Anambra East became the only LGA among the 21 where there was an electoral contest, while APGA candidates were unopposed in the other 20 LGAs.

Speaking to journalists at the Anambra East LGA Secretariat in Otuocha on Saturday, the YPP’s Local Government Collation Agent for Anambra East, Charles Ifediora, announced the boycott of the election by his party members.

Ifediora alleged that the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance and the state government connived to instigate violence and scare the opposition away on election day.

He said the situation became tense after YPP agents and supporters assembled at their designated locations to participate in the election.

He also alleged that gunshots were fired around the Anambra East LGA Secretariat in Otuocha when the distribution of electoral materials was about to commence.

He said, “We are boycotting the election over widespread irregularities and violence against our party agents, members and voters.

“None of our party’s agents was allowed to carry out their duties. There were gunshots around the LGA Secretariat. The gun incident prevented our agents and supporters from participating in the election.

“The development was particularly disturbing because the YPP had presented candidates for all 15 councillorship positions in the local government, covering 241 polling units.

“Security operatives from Agunechemba and Udo-Ga-Achi vigilante outfits had been mobilised by the state government to ensure that the only opposition party fielding candidates did not participate effectively in the LGA election.

“The situation is appalling. The election was scheduled to take place today, and when our people assembled as planned, all my agents were not allowed.

“There were several gunshots and one of our party members, a lady, was shot and taken to the hospital.”

An eyewitness near the scene, identified as Uche Akaniro, also said there were shooting incidents around the area, but said there were no major casualties.

“Yes, there were shootings near the LGA Secretariat in the early hours of today, but before we arrived at the Secretariat to vote, police had cordoned off the place and restored calm. We later learnt that some people were injured when they were scampering for safety.

“We thank God there were no major casualties. The panic disrupted the electoral activity for some time, which resulted in many voters boycotting the election,” Akaniro added.

Reacting to the development, the APGA Publicity Secretary, Mazi Ejimofor Opara, described the YPP’s claims as baseless.

“That is a figment of their imagination. They knew they stood no chance and a bad workman will always quarrel with his tools,” Opara added.

However, when contacted over the shooting allegation, the spokesperson for the Anambra State Police Command, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, denied that there had been any shooting in the area, insisting that the election went peacefully.

Ikenga said the Commissioner of Police, CP Nnanna Ama, led an election security monitoring patrol team to Anambra East LGA and other parts of the state.

“There was no gun shot in the area. The CP led a security patrol team to the area and as of the time the team left, no gun shot was heard. The patrol was aimed at assessing the security situation, monitoring the deployment and conduct of personnel, and ensuring a safe, peaceful and orderly conduct of the elections across the State.

“The Commissioner of Police reiterated the Command’s commitment to maintaining law and order throughout the electoral process and urged residents to remain peaceful, law-abiding and security conscious.”