The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in Kaduna State have threatened to boycott the repeat election into the Soba federal constituency.
The two political parties announced their position to INEC at a meeting convened by the electoral body to mobilise stakeholders toward a peaceful and successful poll.
INEC had scheduled Thursday Feb. 9, to conclude election in 49 polling units where it said election did not take place on Feb. 4 due to irregularities.
The state Chairman of ACN Alhaji Mohammed Soba and that of CPC Ahmadu Cocacola, however, insisted that the Feb. 4 election be cancelled in its entirety to allow for fresh poll on Feb. 9.
They insisted that any other action by INEC would violate the provisions of Section 46 of the 2010 Electoral Act, which provided for a two-week notice before the conduct of an election in the country.
Soba, told the meeting that the “election is practically and legally not tenable”, saying: “We will do everything legally possible to stop or invalidate it”.
He advised INEC to also address all the petitions arising from the Saturday poll and comply with the provisions of the law.
On his part, Cocacola informed the commission that 105 polling units and not 49 were affected by the election irregularities in the constituency and called for the cancellation of the entire poll.
He also said the commission must explain why collation centers were shifted to undesignated places without informing the parties and the alleged hijacking of 60 ballot boxes by thugs.
Reacting to the threats, Alhaji Halliru Tambuwal, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, said INEC relied on Section 28 of the Electoral Act 2010 for the conduct of the election, saying that 14 days notice was needed for fresh polls.
The commissioner, however, pledged to consult with the INEC headquarters in Abuja over the legal issues raised by the political parties. .
“I appreciate the fact that you are in an emotional profession, but let us not lose our heads,” Tambuwal said.
He had earlier informed the stakeholders that the poll would hold in only 49 affected polling units and solicited for their cooperation.
He assured them of a free and fair contest, assuring that the commission had concluded all logistics and security arrangements for the election
The meeting was also attended by representatives of other political parties, security agencies and the media.
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