Bring Perpetrators of Rivers Attack to Justice, APC tells IGP

 

By Nurat Uthman

The All Progressives Congress National Working Committee has reacted to Monday’s attack on its governorship candidate, Tonye Cole at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital.

The APC governorship candidate and his team were attacked while on a visit to the Commission office in Port Harcourt to observe the Certified True Copy (CTC) of documents used for the Governorship election to enable the party file petitions at the election tribunal.

The outcome of the election to be challenged at the election petition tribunal was won by the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, (PDP), Similanayi Fubara.

National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Felix Morka, in a statement on Wednesday accused the PDP as the mastermind of the Monday attack on Tonye Cole.

The APC declared that the attack was aimed at frustrating the effort of its Governorship Candidate to obtain vital documents to exercise his constitutional right to challenge the declared result of the Governorship election in the state.

It tasked the Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, to use his good offices to initiate an ” urgent and thorough investigation into this and previous incidents of violent attacks on leaders and members of our Party in Rivers State, and to bring the sponsors and perpetrators to justice.”

The statement reads in part: “The All Progressives Congress (APC) condemns, in the strongest terms, the attack on some of its leaders and members in Port Harcourt on Monday, April 3, 2023, by thugs and supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

This barbaric and unprovoked attack occurred during a visit to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s office by Mr Tonye Cole, APC Governorship Candidate, Dr Innocent Barikor, Deputy Governorship Candidate, Mr. Emeka Beke, State Chairman of the Party and 3 other party officials to obtain the Certified True Copies (CTC) of vital documents in the March 18 Governorship and House of Assembly elections. Without warning, thugs and supporters of the PDP descended on our Party officials, inflicting severe and life-threatening injuries on them, and damaging personal and party properties.

“This premeditated attack by PDP thugs and operatives on our officials and members in Port Harcourt is yet another in what has now become an orgy of violence carried out with mind-boggling audacity, and with absolutely no serious investigation by the police or repercussions for the instigators and perpetrators of this serial violence.

“Ostensibly, this latest attack was aimed at frustrating the effort of our Governorship Candidate to obtain vital documents to exercise his constitutional right to challenge the declared result of the Governorship election in the state. For the PDP that claims to have won the election to resort to this level of violence to block a legitimate legal challenge tells a different story of a party sitting precariously on needles and pins in the face of prospects of a legal challenge by our Governorship Candidate.

“While we commend the swift response of security agencies, especially the Police and the Nigerian Army in restoring peace and order in the wake of this brutal attack, again, we call on the Inspector General of Police to order an urgent and thorough investigation into this and previous incidents of violent attacks on leaders and members of our Party in Rivers State, and to bring the sponsors and perpetrators to justice.”