Rivers collation officer cries out over threat to life week after results announcement
The Rivers State Collation Officer in the February 25, 2023 presidential election, Prof. Charles Adias, has cried out over threat to his life.
This came one week after the announcement of results by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The threat to his life and family members has made him adjourn the collation of results.
The university don said some loyalists of a political party were threatening his life.
He added that those who accused him of manipulating the results of the election in the state were publicising and sharing his photos on social media.
He said the loyalists of the political party were calling on their members to deal with him.
The Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University, Otuoke (FUO), Bayelsa State made this revelation in a statement titled: ‘My stewardship, my bond as state Collation Officer for the 2023 Presidential Election, Rivers State’.
The VC said: “On my appointment as State Collation Officer for the 2023 Presidential Elections (SCOPE), Rivers State, I had set out, as a call to duty on national assignment to fulfil an essential part of my Community Service as an academic and Vice-Chancellor of a Federal University.
“Hence, I worked within the scope of my briefs as statutorily demanded, and as clearly enunciated in the Electoral Guidelines and other enabling instruments. By the nature of my assignment, as it is with every other job in this sphere, I knew it was going to be challenging, but I braved it being assured that I would surmount whatever challenge by the grace of God.
“As statutorily designated, my job as the State’s Collation Officer for the Presidential Elections (SCOPE), Rivers State, and as expected of all Vice-Chancellors of Federal Universities, who were also deployed to other states of the Federation too, I received the report of collated and announced results from Local Government Area Council Collation Officers (EC8C).
“I collated the votes scored by each political party from Forms EC8C into Form EC8D and entered the votes scored in the spaces provided; added up the LGA collated results to obtain the State’s summary; cross-checked the totals and entries in Form EC8D with the Collation Support and Result Verification System (CSRVS) secretariat for computational accuracy; announced loudly the votes scored by each Political Party; signed, dated and stamped the Form EC8D and requested the Polling Agents to countersign; Then other formalities followed up the ladder to the final Collation Centre in Abuja.
“The above procedures were dutifully followed under public viewing and in the presence of all the officials, from the designated regular INEC staff, INEC Ad Hoc staff, party agents and officers, security personnel to local and foreign observers, and the press, with no adverse and untoward behaviours noted or recorded, all the way.
“Also, as explained above, my job, as it is with other 36 Federal Universities Vice-Chancellors, was simply to dutifully collate results that had been recorded at the Units, Wards and Local Government levels up to the State’s Collation Centre where all the scores were summed up in the presence of all concerned persons and groups, including but not limited to party agents.
“By this arrangement, it is quite impossible for a State Collation Officer for the Presidential Election to manipulate scores that had already been counted, recorded, confirmed, signed, and stamped by officers at the lower levels of collation (Unit, Ward, and LGA).
“Looking at the scope and modalities of my job as well as my neutrality as a Vice-Chancellor, how could anyone have imagined to the extent of alleging that I was out to favour any candidate or political party in the Presidential elections? “
He said he received many phone calls and text messages threatening him and his family members on February 26, 2023 while he was en route to Port Harcourt for his duty.
While that was ongoing, his images and phone numbers have been circulated on social media.
The VC furthered: “I managed to bear it all till the following day when I set out to collate results for 18 more local government areas making it 21 LGAs as at February 27, 2023.
“At the end of the hectic process of Collation for that day, the results for Obio/Akpor and Degema Local Government Areas were not ready.
“Considering all what had happened, the following day, on February 28, 2023, I decided to adjourn the Collation of results and insisted on a press conference to let everyone know about the several threats to my life and as they may affect the Collation exercise.
“Thereafter, the Collation was adjourned, and I insisted that until INEC addressed the issues of misinformation, blackmail and defined the roles of SCOPE as distinct from that of other officers whose duty it is to receive results as collated at the Units to the Wards, all through to the local governments, I would not go on with the exercise. My request was granted and INEC had a press conference debunking all the misinformation and disinformation. Thereafter, the Collation continued and the exercise was completed.
“Dear compatriots, ordinarily, I would have been silent about the situation since the Rivers State INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr. Johnson Alalibo Sinikiem, had, on February 28, 2023, issued a press statement in this regard, but I still feel I owe our country men and women the duty of a thorough explanation of what happened as narrated above, because my image is far more precious to me than anything else. Trust me; there is no iota of truth in the rumours that had been peddled. It is just a figment of the imagination of their bearers to what end I cannot really ascertain.
“I want to urge us to discountenance all the misinformation and lies that had been peddled about me in relation to the conduct of 2023 Presidential Elections in Rivers State. Let us be assured that my patriotic zeal for the growth and development of our dear country will not be dampened, no matter the seeming discouragements.”
