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Certificate: INEC Wants To Organise A Special Programme For Me, Says Okorocha

  Advertisement The Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha, appears not disturbed by the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to issue him … Continue reading Certificate: INEC Wants To Organise A Special Programme For Me, Says Okorocha


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A file photo of Senator Rochas Okorocha.

 

The Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha, appears not disturbed by the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to issue him his certificate of return.

The governor who addressed a news conference on Thursday in Abuja said he believed the electoral body was planning something special to present him with his certificate.

“Maybe INEC wants to organise a special programme for me to hand over the certificate to me but clearly, I’ve won and it was a peaceful election,” he said.

READ ALSOWithholding My Certificate Of Return Can Cause Tension In Imo – Okorocha

INEC had on Tuesday released a list of members of the ninth National Assembly members elected during the February 23 elections.

The electoral body had announced that it would present certificates of return to them on Thursday, but exempted Governor Okorocha’s name, alleging that the returning officer was made to declare him winner of the election “under duress”.

 

But Okorocha insisted that the claim by the returning officer was only a ploy to cripple his political career.

While the event was taking place at the International Conference Centre in the nation’s capital, the governor told reporters elsewhere in the city that he was duly elected to represent Imo West Senatorial District.

A document presented by Governor Okorocha during a press conference in Abuja on March 14, 2019.

 

He noted that INEC had yet to offer any explanation as to why his name was missing from the list of senators-elect who were presented with their certificates of return on Thursday.“INEC has removed my name from the list of senators, having been declared the winner. I am in darkness as to what is the reason why I am not invited to collect my certificate of return,” he said.

The governor further criticised the electoral umpire for declaring the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Emeka Ihedioha, as the winner of the governorship election in Imo State.

He claimed that the governor-elect failed to secure 25 per cent of votes in two-thirds of the local government areas (LGAs) of the state, and demand that Ihedioha’s victory be upturned, saying he won in only nine out of the 27 LGAs in the state.

Another document presented by Governor Okorocha during a press conference in Abuja on March 14, 2019.