The Edo State Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Dr Anugbum Onuoha, on Wednesday said he is not afraid of being removed as the number one electoral officer of the state, noting that if removed, he would simply be deployed to another state.
Onuoha stated this at a press briefing in Benin City while reacting to calls for his removal as REC by the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the state.
The REC, who said PDP was ignorant of the workings of the commission, described the prevailing mentality in the nation’s electoral system as absurd.
According to him, “this mentality in our electoral system, that anybody that loses election will abuse INEC, and anybody that wins, INEC is the best, is not good at all.
“You failed the election and you are now asking that the REC should be removed from office. Is it the REC that made you fail an election? Will the REC be in all the polling units?
“They are calling for my removal. Even though I am removed, I will be transferred to another state. I am not afraid of being removed. What I am doing here my conscience is alive and every staff of the commission their conscience is alive too.
“I told you that the election is not an event alone. It is a process. Even though we have done our own, it doesn’t stop there, the court has every right to say this election was not conducted according to the relevant electoral laws and regulations.
“The problem we people have is that we don’t know when to ask questions. The problem with Nigerians, is it institutional or legal framework?
“The laws and regulations say we should do this, can the REC be a polling clerk, can REC be a Supervisor, an EO or Head of Departments?
“Our people just want to say something. What about other people that were involved in the elections like the electoral officers and among others. Should everybody be deployed?
“The Supreme Court of Nigeria has said that we conducted a credible election. So anybody that’s saying otherwise is not talking the truth. The highest court in the land has spoken in favour of INEC. I expect you people to congratulate us.”
Onuoha maintained that even if all the electoral officers and staff were removed from the state office and others redeployed to oversee its affairs, the structure of the commission would never give room for electoral compromise or manipulation.
