By Cajetan Mmuta
The Senator Andy Uba Governorship Campaign Organisation, (SAUGCO) and Anambra State government on Monday traded tackles over an allegation by the campaign organization of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Candidate that Governor Willie Obiano perfected a plot to use civil servants and teachers to rig the November 6th election in the state.

The SAUGCO said it had uncovered a covert and obnoxious directive by Governor Willy Obiano, to all civil servants in the state to submit their voters’ card ahead of the November 6, 2021 governorship election.

It said the governor, allegedly, threatened to withhold the salaries of civil servants who fail to comply by Wednesday, October 6, 2021.

Director, Media, and Publicity of SAUGCO, Hon. Victor Afam Ogene made the allegation in a statement made available to newsmen in Awka the state capital.

But in his quick reaction, Mr. C. Don Adinuba, the State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment said, “The allegation is unintelligent and lower than fake news”.

He challenged the APC and its cohorts to show proof of such circular which they lay claim to, pointing out that “the APC has clearly demonstrated and made a projection of what they would do during the November 6th election in the state.

Adinuba said, “They claim they have seen the directive; please ask them to show the date and copy of the directive because there’s nothing like that. They are used to criminality; they think everybody is a criminal. This is what is called projection in psychology, they have been buying and spending money to buy voters’ cards. So, they think if they were on the government this is what they will do.”

“This is absurd; everything is on the card reader. The allegation is not intelligent at all, it’s lower than fake news,” he stated.

However, Ogene alleged that “In one of the circulars which convened the directive, a Director in the State’s civil service, (names withheld) requested teachers through the Anambra State Universal Basic Education Board, ASUBEB, to submit among others, their National Identification Number (NIN), copy of their last promotion letter and incredibly, voters’ card.

The SAUGCO’s scribe who described the order as purely politically inspired, also wondered why the governor would forcibly seek to coerce the State’s workforce into being part of his illegal schemes every election cycle.

He said, “We state, with every emphasis at our disposal, that a voter’s card is the personal property of the owner of such card, and cannot be forcibly surrendered to any other person, or authority, under whatever guise.”

“We recall that four years ago, in the 2017 gubernatorial election in the state, Governor Obiano through the same political subterfuge, deceived Anambra civil servants into surrendering their voters’ card; only to use same to conjure his magical re-election victory, despite his poor governance ratings.

According to him, “Today, four years after, Gov. Obiano is back to the same wily ways, working in cahoots with some nefarious staffers of the Independent National Election Commission, INEC to attempt a brazen subversion of the desire of Ndi Anambra to freely elect their own leader.”

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“We, therefore, call on INEC, the Department of State Security, DSS, and other relevant security agencies to forestall the plan to clone the voters’ card of Anambra civil servants.

“We wish to enjoin the people of Anambra state, particularly teeming supporters of the All Progressives Congress, APC not to give in to the brute tactics of the governor.

“From assurances gotten from INEC and the security agencies, it is illegal for anyone to hand over his or her voter’s card to a third party, particularly within days to an election, as anyone caught doing so stands the risk of being arrested and made to face the law.

“We wish to reassure the people of Anambra state, especially civil servants who have had to grit under Gov. Obiano’s unorthodox policies, that their day of redemption is near when an APC government led by Senator Uba will restore the glory and pride of the workers.”