BREAKING: Violence erupts at Collation Center as Enugu South Assembly rerun-election fails to hold third time

Violence erupted at the Amechi Awkunanw Collation Center of the Enugu South Urban House of Assembly election with Senator Kelvin Chukwu of Enugu East Senatorial district affected by police teargas.

Report said that a good number thugs swopped on the Collation Center in suspicion that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, May declare the result of the election at the center since the rerun election could not be conducted at the polling units in Uwani secondary schools, Enugu.

The botched election was the third attempt by INEC to conduct the Enugu south urban state Assembly rerun election.

The seat has been vacant since the State Assembly Election Petition Tribunal nullified the March 18, 2023, election results and ordered a rerun in eight polling units of the constituency, which have a total of 4,618 registered voters.

The first attempt, on February 3, 2024, was botched amid disputes over alleged missing of original result sheets. The second attempt, two weeks later, failed to hold following the outbreak of violence, with both parties trading blames. The third attempt, on June 8, 2024 also ended in disputes.

The election is basically between the Labour party candidate, Bright Ngene, who was sworn-into the Assembly seat in 2023, but who is presently in prison over a different community matter, that allegedly went political; and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidate, Sam Ngene, who was previously a member of the House of Assembly.

In the March 18, 2023 poll, Hon. Bright Ngene of the LP was declared winner with 5,862 votes, ahead of the runner-up, Hon. Sam Ngene (PDP) with over 2,000 votes. That outcome was later overturned by the court, leading to the scheduled rerun.

Whereas there was a large turn of Voters, on Saturday, and the INEC presented electoral materials, tension from both sides of the ruling and opposition parties could not allow the election to hold with allegation and counter allegations.

Present at the venue were the Minister of Innovation Science and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji; Senator Kelvin Chukwu of Enugu East Senatorial district and other House of Representatives members from the Senatorial district who all won elections under the platform of the LP but have now defected to the All progressives Congress, APC.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner for Enugu State, Dr. Chukwuemeka Chukwu pleaded for peace to allow the election to hold but his plea fell on deaf ears.

Speaking with newsmen, Chukwu said: "You can see the good number of political bigwigs in this place from PDP, APC, Labour Party. Many people are here, either to vote but they are saying that, according to one of our NYSC members, who is here to preside in this election, they said they will not vote unless the person in the prison will not contest the election. 

"So the members of the public, the people of Enugu, I am pleading with all of you to kindly allow us to conclude this process today. This is my prayer, all of us let us behave ourselves, whether you are whatever, from any rank you have in society. This is the fourth time we are coming for this election. I am pleading with you. I don't know why this place is even crowded. It is not supposed to be , so I am pleading with you, I am begging who is who in Enugu State let us not cause problem in this election. Please that is my prayer and that is my request."

Different protests were mounted by different groups that made the conduct of the election impossible. At about 3pm, INEC packed it's materials and went back to its office under heavy security protection.

No result was announced at the venue, while tension shifted to the coalition center, which at the time of this report remained inconclusive.