Okorocha Sues INEC, Says it lacks Moral Justification to Withhold his Certificate of Return

The Governor  of Imo state, Rochas Okorocha has sued the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to court asking them to urgently present him his certificate of return as the Senator-Elect for the February 23 Imo West Senatorial district election.

The Governor while addressing newsmen at the government house in Owerri the Imo state capital, said the Electoral Umpire falls short of any moral or constitutional justification for withholding his certificate of return by acting on a mere allegation by the returning officer Professor Innocent Ibeabuchi who might be playing a script by his political enemies.

“I cannot understand how a mere allegation of somebody, an individual, talking about duress, which has not been proven by anybody, will stop INEC from giving me my certificate of return for an election that I won properly.”

“I cannot understand why an individual’s report of a professor who lied, will now be taken more than the report by the Nigeria Police, State Security Service, that said there was no crisis, everything was peaceful. The returning officer should be called to order”, Okorocha fumed.

He urged INEC to release his Certificate of return so the issue will not cause any constitutional and political problem for the country in future.

“INEC has no moral justification to release certificate of return to someone who, knowingly, flouted the Nigerian constitution and refusing to give someone his certificate, who won duly.”

The electoral body had insisted that it will not issue a certificate of return to Okorocha, who was declared the winner of the election by the returning officer Professor Innocent Ibeabuchi, after alleging that he announced the result out of duress.