Threats by the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra raise the bar of anxiety as the people of Anambra State go to the polls to elect a new governor on Saturday, writes Akani Alaka.
All eyes will be on Anambra this Saturday, November 6 as the people of the state which prides itself the Light of the Nation will go to the polls to elect a successor to Governor Willie Obiano. Yet, it’s an election that many in and outside the state have been waiting for with fear and trepidation.
While ordinarily, the ‘do or die’ approach of Nigerian politicians to electoral contests has always been a source of anxiety during election seasons, the incursion of secessionist group, the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB has raised the bar of concerns of what may happen across the over 5000 polling units on Saturday many notches higher.
The separatist group had declared that it would not allow any election to hold in any part of the South-east at least until the Federal Government allowed the conduct of a referendum on its demand for carving out Igboland into a separate state of Biafra. Thus, facilities of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC in Anambra and parts of the South-east have been the target of attacks by gunmen suspected to be members of the Eastern Security Network, ESN, the militant arm of IPOB.
Specifically, in what is believed to be part of the plot to disrupt the election in Anambra, offices of INEC in Awka, the state capital which housed sensitive and non-sensitive materials for the election as well as in other parts of the state were burnt.
INEC Ready For The ‘Unusual Election’
INEC offices in other parts of the state have also been attacked. Speaking during an interview last week, Festus Okoye, INEC’s commissioner for information and voter education said the attacks on the facilities has made Anambra gubernatorial election unusually costly for the commission. Okoye said the commission has had to replace 326 generating sets, rebuild the facility where electoral materials are kept and also replace non-sensitive materials.
Okoye, who acknowledged that INEC is conducting Anambra ‘in a very unusual circumstance’ noted that the commission has had to rebuild its offices which were burnt in Nnewi North and Idemili North, replace over 326 generating sets mopped up from its local government offices and stored in the headquarters for safekeeping.
He added that the commission had also had to rebuild its stores and replace over 60 per cent of the non-sensitive materials and utility vehicles deployed to the Awka office ahead of the election. This, he said, was in addition to the rebuilding of the burnt office of the commission in Awka. “So, in terms of cost, it’s been very costly and we can’t compare it to Ondo and Edo states elections, because we are in unusual circumstances, we had to do things differently,” he said.
Nevertheless, INEC at the national and state level had insisted that when the electorate arrive at the polling stations on Saturday, they will have no problems whatsoever in casting votes for their preferred candidates. Indeed, INEC’s resident electoral commissioner, (REC), Anambra State, Nwachukwu Orji had during a voter education and sensitisation forum for Persons with disabilities (PWDs) and Women groups said the election would be ‘embarrassingly’ transparent.
Orji who was represented by INEC Head of Voter Education and Publicity, Mr Samuel Nimem, said that the commission had successfully carried out most of the activities on schedule for the election. “With all facilities in place and with the electronic transmission of results, I tell you that Anambra election will be embarrassingly transparent. This will build confidence in our electoral system,” he said.
Speaking in Abuja last Thursday at a forum organized by the joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on INEC, the chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, affirmed that the commission was prepared for the election. Yakubu said while relevant election materials had been deployed in all local governments in Anambra, the commission had recovered from the attacks on its facilities.
“We have successfully carried out 12 of the 14 activities we should do; the only outstanding activities are on the last day of campaigns by political parties which are going to be in the next eight days, and the election proper on the 6th of November,” he said.
“We have recovered from the series of attacks on our facilities, and I am happy to say that we have deployed all relevant materials not only to Awka but all the local government areas. We have trained the requisite number of ad-hoc staff for the election and we have also mobilised the transport owners for logistics. As far as INEC is concerned, we are prepared,” Professor Yakubu declared.
IPOB Threats Persist
But the biggest threat to the election remains IPOB. The secessionist group had on 23 October, in a move believed to be targeted at jeopardizing the Anambra election announced that it will lock down the South-east if Nnamdi Kanu, its leader was not released from detention by November 4.
Kanu was returned to the custody of the Department of State Services based on the order of the court after he pleaded not guilty to a fresh 7-count charge bordering on alleged terrorism and treasonable felony slammed against him by the Federal Government on November 21.
He was due to return to the court on November 10 to challenge the competency of the new charges, according to his lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor. IPOB had earlier threatened that it would shut down the South-east for one month if Kanu was not brought to court for the resumption of his trial on October 21.
The group issued the threat following the failure of the DSS to produce Kanu in court on July 26 for the continuation of his trial which has been stalled since November 2017 when he jumped bail and ran away from the country.
But Justice Nyako had directed that Kanu who was brought to court three days after he was repatriated to the country from Kenya in a special operation by the Nigerian government and Interpol on July 2021 must be present in court when she adjourned hearing for October 21.
In the same vein, Ohanaeze Ndigbo and other stakeholders in the South-east had pleaded with the DSS and President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure that Kanu was brought to court.
To further drive home the point that bringing Kanu to court was essential for peace to reign in the South-east, Kanu’s lead counsel, Ejiofor had also in a press conference on October 22 said people in the region still obey every Monday’s sit-at-home order declared by the secessionist group to protest detention of Kanu because they believed that the IPOB leader is dead.
“We also wish to state that the current tension and regular Monday sit-at-home being observed by our people in the South-east, despite the exercise being called off by our client’s peaceful movement, is steadily gaining momentum because our people are yet to see and believe that our client, Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is still alive. This suspicion was further fueled by his non-production in court on the 26th day of July 2021, for no tangible reason,” said Ejiofor.
However, the DSS, to the relief of many in and outside of the South-east region brought Kanu on October 21 with the photographs the leader of IPOB took with his team of lawyers in the courtroom published in the social and mainstream media.
Chukwuemeka Ezeife, former governor of Anambra who was in court for the trial but was denied entry into the courtroom had predicted that the November 6 Anambra governorship election would be very peaceful with the reassuring public appearance of Kanu.
But such hopes were dashed with the announcement by the proscribed separatist group in a statement by its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, that IPOB would enforce fresh lockdown in the South-east between November 5 and 10. Powerful said the lockdown was in reaction to the detention of its leader in DSS custody and other things that happened in court on October 21.
“Our leader, Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi must be released unconditionally on or before November 4, 2021, because he has not committed any offence known to any law. Failure to release our leader Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi KANU on or before November 4, 2021, our one-week sit-at-home begins on November 5, 2021, till November 10,” said Powerful.
IPOB said in the statement that the lockdown would be over the entire South-east.
But analysts say the real target of the organisation is the Anambra governorship election. And going by the success the group has recorded in grounding activities across the South-east every Monday, IPOB will unarguably make the exercise a very difficult task for INEC with the one-week sit-at-home which it said would begin on November 5, a day before the poll.
Overwhelming Anambra With Security
The fear of the ‘unknown gunmen’ who have been enforcing the Monday stay-at-home order in the South-east will certainly keep many voters indoors. And with its new lockdown commencing a day before the election, INEC may not be able to deploy logistics for the election while those recruited to serve as ad-hoc staff in the election may not even turn up for the job.
Indeed, reports last week had indicated that some of the ad-hoc staff recruited for the election by INEC were backing out in droves. But INEC denied this. But the commission has also been emphatic that a key challenge to the election is insecurity.
At a recent meeting with the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, Professor Yakubu said he was particularly concerned about the safety of staff and ad-hoc staff who would help in the conduct of the election. He noted that information at his disposal indicated that those who had been attacking the facilities of the commission do not want the governorship election to hold.
The threat to the election has also not escaped President Muhammadu Buhari. Briefing journalists on the outcome of the meeting between the President and the security chiefs on October 21, the NSA said Buhari had directed that every measure must be taken to ensure that the election was conducted peacefully.
He said the order followed the threat posed by proscribed IPOB to the election. “The president has directed that under no circumstances will anything be allowed to stop the elections from taking place successfully. The people have a right to vote and select their leader. No group or individual will be allowed to stimulate anarchy and chaos, leading to murderous activities,” Monguno said.
“The president has made it very clear that the Armed Forces and all law enforcement agencies must make sure that the elections take place even if it means overwhelming the entire environment with the presence of security personnel”, he added. The NSA had also at other forums last week reiterated that government would not allow IPOB to disrupt the election.
And in tune with the direction of the President, the Police last week announced a massive deployment of men and equipment to Anambra for the election. The over 30,000 police contingent would be led by Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Joseph Egbunike.
In a statement, Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba said Egbunike would lead the police personnel to ensure a peaceful environment devoid of violence and conducive enough for people to come out to vote. Deployed alongside Egbunike to Anambra was the police DIG in charge of Operations, five Assistant Inspectors General of Police, 14 Commissioners of Police, 31 Deputy Commissioners of Police and 48 Assistant Commissioners of Police.
The IGP added that the senior officers were to coordinate human and other operational deployments in the three Senatorial Districts and 21 Local Government Areas and the 5720 polling units in Anambra to contain all threats to the election. “The IGP reassures the nation that the Force is adequately prepared for the Gubernatorial Elections in Anambra State come November 6th, 2021.
He reiterated that the Force would do everything within its powers to work with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and all stakeholders to protect democratic values, provide a level-playing field for all political actors, ensure adequate protection of voters, INEC personnel and equipment, accredited observers and other key players in Anambra State,” Alkali Baba added in the statement signed on his behalf by Force spokesperson, Frank Mba.
On its part, the Army has an ongoing operation tagged “Operation Golden Dawn” in the South-east through which it is expected to deploy troops in various parts of Anambra for the election. The Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and the DSS are also deploying massively for the election.
Begging IPOB
This in itself has also raised concerns that the fear of the ‘known and unknown’ gunmen may keep voters out of the polling units. Thus, beyond the heavy deployment of security, stakeholders in the region have also been begging IPOB not to disrupt the election.
Last Wednesday, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide appealed to IPOB to reconsider the seven-day sit-at-home order in the South-east from November 5 to November 11 to allow the governorship election to hold. In the statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Alex Ogbonnia, entitled, ‘Ohanaeze pleads with IPOB for Anambra election,’ the group also said the disruption of the Anambra election would be a major setback for Igbo.
It also advised Governor Obiano, to convene a joint meeting of the Anambra State chapter of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Association of Town Unions, traditional rulers, Archbishops, Bishops and the Clergy to appeal to IPOB not to disrupt the election. Others are also warning of the possibility of hijacking the election in the guise of combating insecurity. “If we allow this insecurity to succeed in scuttling the election, they will just hijack the situation and win the election. Our people should come out and vote, nothing will happen. The situation has not even got to the level people should be considering whether or not the election should hold,” a non-governmental organisation, the Centre for Victims of Extra-Judicial Killings and Torture said in a statement by its Director, Comrade Frank Kalu last Thursday.
But the group had in reaction said its lockdown was not about Anambra, but its leader, Kanu. “Politicians must leave IPOB out of their predicaments. They should stop dragging IPOB into their election. We knew their evil plans when they were killing their fellow politicians and blaming it on IPOB. They should leave us alone,” Powerful said in a statement.
Later in the day, IPOB issued another statement accusing the Federal Government of plans to kill Kanu. Analysts told this newspaper last week that such statements by secessionist groups are cues that would stir anger in those determined to disrupt the election.
Who Wins Anambra Election?
However, voters courageous enough to go to their polling stations on Saturday will be handed ballot papers with the names of 18 contestants and their political parties, according to the final list of candidates by INEC.
The candidates are Valentine Ozigbo of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and Sen. Andy Uba of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Also included in the list are Sen Ifeanyi Uba as the candidate of Young Progressives Party (YPP); Dr Obiora Okonkwo for the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP); Obiora Agbasimalo, Labour Party; Dr Godwin Maduka, Accord Party; Bennet Etiaba, African Alliance (AA); Chidozie Nwankwo,(AAC); Akachukwu Nwankpo (ADC), Afam Ume-Ezeoke (ADP); Geoffrey Onyejegbu (APM); Philip Echetebu (APP), Okeke Chika Jerry (BOOT Party). Also, Leonard Ohajinkpo will contest on the platform of NNPP, Afam Ezenwafor for NRM, Nnamdi Nwawuo for PRP and Obinna Uzoh for SDP.
The candidates have not been able to carry out extensive campaigns because of the IPOB engineered insecurity. Indeed, gunmen believed to the members of IPOB’s ESN had attacked some of the parties during their campaigns with some lives lost. Thus, the candidates only resumed the campaign at a very low-key level in the past two weeks.
However, the candidates of APGA, the ruling party in the state, APC, PDP and YPP are considered to be front runners in the election. It is believed that the factor of incumbency will enhance the chances of Soludo who also parades intimidating credentials as a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and a distinguished economist.
Soludo has also been campaigning on sustaining the 16 years legacy of APGA in Anambra State. He has promised to deploy his global contacts to attract funds for the development of the state and create jobs for the youths if he is elected governor.
Also, the fact that APGA has become a grassroots party with deep penetration in the nooks and crannies of Anambra State may work in his favour.
On the other hand, aside from promising to provide jobs and develop infrastructure across the state if elected, Uba, the candidate of the APC, has been campaigning on the need to bring Anambra into the loop of national politics. Supporters of Uba, who spent a few days as a governor of Anambra in 2007 as a two-time elected senator and a former presidential aide, he has all it takes in terms of popularity and contact to win the election.
Also, the defections of chieftains from the ruling APGA, including the deputy of Governor Obiano is expected to enhance his chances. On the contrary, some cynics say APC has remained unpopular in Anambra. There is also the suspicion that the Federal Government may take advantage of the atmosphere of uncertainty created by insecurity in Anambra to enhance the chances of the APC candidate.
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Ozigbo, a former banker and chief executive of Transcorp Hilton, has also promised to revolutionise infrastructure development, create jobs if he is elected governor. And though the PDP has not won the Anambra governorship in the past 16 years, the party has always produced lawmakers at the national and state level. So, PDP is not unknown in the state.
The candidate of YPP, a senator is also promising jobs for the youths and infrastructure like the others. He also said the fact that he was able to win a senatorial election, the only person elected into such position on the platform of his party showed that he cannot be a pushover in the election. Will any of the three win or will any of the other 15 candidates be able to upstage the apple cart as they have been boasting?