The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) recently looked into Nigeria’s presidential election that took place on February 25 and found evidence that suggests a sizable number of the results may have been tampered with.
According to Newsmen, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) named Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for president, as the “president-elect” on March 1 after handily defeating his rivals.
The BBC investigation, nevertheless, uncovered irregularities in Rivers State, a crucial battlefield, and cast doubt on the impartiality of the election official who declared some results.
APP Alleges Results’ Manipulation In 11 States, Ask Court To Nullify Tinubu’s Victory
The study concentrated on Rivers State because there had been many complaints from opposition parties there.
The BBC discovered notable discrepancies between the results and the voting tally sheets from over 6,000 polling places in the state.
According to the BBC’s investigation, Bola Tinubu of the APC was officially declared the winner, but it appeared that Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) had gotten the most votes in the state.
According to the BBC’s research, Tinubu received an additional 106,000 votes, while Obi saw a loss of more than 50,000.
Due to missing or insufficient data, the inquiry ran into additional difficulties.
The voting process was hampered by technical difficulties or security issues at certain polling places, while other polling places had results that were unavailable or posted improperly.
2023 Election: Wike Working For Tinubu Victory In Rivers State – Fayose
The dramatic fall in votes for Peter Obi in the official results, according to the BBC, remained inexplicable even after taking these considerations into consideration.
Two local government areas, Oyigbo and Obio/Akpor, were the subject of the BBC inquiry and were found to have significant disparities.
The BBC’s polling station count in Oyigbo was six times lower than the official vote total for Bola Tinubu.
In contrast, Peter Obi’s support had decreased by 50%. In Obio/Akpor, the official result contradicted the BBC’s count by showing much less votes for Tinubu and a far lower number of votes for Obi.
Concerns regarding Dr. Dickson Ariaga, an election official who gave out the results for Oyigbo and other parties during the official announcement in Port Harcourt, were also brought up by the BBC investigation.
The Federal College of Education in Omoku, where Dr. Ariaga claimed to work, rejected any knowledge of him, and the BBC was unable to contact him.
2023: Wike Invites Peter Obi To Commission Project In Rivers State
A Facebook profile with a matching name was discovered throughout the investigation, and there was a strong likelihood that it belonged to the same person. Despite these results, Dr. Ariaga did not return calls or mails requesting more information.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), when challenged with the contradictions and the identification concerns surrounding Dr. Ariaga, presented justifications for the problems.
The regional spokesman for INEC in Port Harcourt stated that due to a lack of resources during the election process, some people were hired without having their identification documents properly verified.
The Abuja headquarters of INEC declined to comment due to current legal issues.
Even though they wouldn’t have significantly changed the outcome of the presidential election on their own, the abnormalities found in Rivers State are suggestive of potential tampering.
Follow us on Facebook
Post Disclaimer
The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author and forum participants on this website do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Anaedo Online or official policies of the Anaedo Online.