THE All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in last Saturday’s governorship election in Anambra State, Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu, has dismissed the victory of the candidate of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chukwuma Soludo, a professor, in the election.
Ukachukwu, who briefed journalists in Awka on Sunday, November 9, in reaction to Soludo’s victory said the election was riddled with intimidation, violence against his supporters, most of whom he said sustained injuries, lost homes and vehicles.
He said he had spoken with his supporters and would also consult with party stakeholders across the state before making a statement on his next move.
He said: “We thank members of our team, they are all gallant soldiers. They are all winners in different ways, including those who were intimidated in many ways, their cars burnt, houses burnt, even my deputy, who was intimidated into running for her dear life when they threatened her. All these people are winners,” he stated.
He informed that he was still collating information about what happened on the election day, and we would talk at the right time.
“Some of my agents were abducted by our opponents and kept until after the election. All these things are not worth talking about now. At this point, we are still collating information both from our party agents, and I have to consult my party to know what’s next,” he noted.
Ukachukwu said the money meant for payment of party agents was termed vote “vote-buying money” by the authorities during the poll.
“They arrested my supporter who was to pay our agents, saying he was carrying money meant for vote buying. Can I buy votes against a sitting governor who has the state treasury? The result of the election will show you who bought votes. If I bought a vote, it would have reflected on the number of votes that I got,” he further said.
The APC candidate also alleged that all the people arrested on the election day were APC members.
“Go and see the young lady whose house was burnt in Anambra East. Her only crime was that she believed in our party and canvases for our victory,” he alleged.
He added, “But for me to have 99,000 genuine votes is even unprecedented. Those are people who voted because Anambra must go forward.
“The number of votes I got is enough to tell them that APC can no longer be ignored in Anambra. Those 99,000 people are the people who voted for us; they are part of those I will consult about our next move. Those are people who believe Anambra must be better. Today, they cannot say that APC is not in existence in Anambra because 99,000 is not a small number.”
The ICIR reported that Soludo, the incumbent governor, won the Anambra State governorship election with 422,664 votes, defeating his closest rival, Ukachukwu, who scored 99,445 votes.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.