AWKA – Dr. Michael Otu, the collation Officer for Orumba North Local Government Area, in the ongoing Anambra governorship election has narrated how he nearly lost his life during the election in the council area.
Mr Otu who made the disclosure on Sunday, while presenting the result for the council area at the State Collation Centre, INEC office in Awka, said he nearly lost his life when thugs attacked the Local Government collation centre during the Anambra Governorship Election held on Saturday.
He said that he was teargassed when trouble ensued and the score sheets were mutilated and he was made to sign a fake result under duress.
“I am lucky to be alive. I was teargassed and as a BP patient, I nearly lost my life. I was forced to sign a result which wasn’t collated by me. The electoral Officer in the local government, Comfort Omoroge, who worked with me, compromised,” he said.
In her reaction, Omoroge stated that Otu was confused and didn’t know the difference between casting of vote and collation of results.
“This man (Otu) has not been involved in an election and it is obvious from the way he behaved on the election day. His actions put us at risk,” she added.
The argument that ensured after the exchange between the collation officer and the electoral officer made the state retuning officer to intervene.
Florence Obi, the returning officer of the state after a brief recess over the contentious result from the Orumba North election, selected a team which held a closed-door meeting with the aim of resolving the irregularities in the result from the local government.
John Edoh, from the University of Calabar, was selected to lead the team of election officials which is made of up of agents of the contesting political parties.
The state returning officer said the team she selected will go into the indoor meeting for 30 mins to cross-check whether the results were mutilated as well as other irregularities before taking a final verdict.
