INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION
Plot 4/5 Sir Udo Udoma Avenue, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
1st April 2019
Re: Tampering With Election Materials; Lie Spinners Are At Work Again
The attention of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Akwa
Ibom State, has been drawn to a press release published on Sunday 31st March,
2019 in the social media by one Nkereuwem Enyonekere, who claims to be the
Publicity Secretary of the APC in the state.
2. The said press release which is captioned “INEC tampering with election materials” is also published in The Nations newspaper of Monday, April 1, 2019, alleging that Mr. Patta, the “Sect Admin” of the Commission, had
called staff to duty on Sunday to “work on election materials”.
3. The allegations are baseless and an outright falsehood from the pit of hell.
4. The so called notice of meeting is not from Mr. Patta and no such meeting was, or is contemplated.
5. Mr. Patta is not a “Sect Admin”, and no such nomenclature exists in the Commission. I have never addressed myself or my correspondences as such. However, what the Commission has nationwide is Administrative
Secretary, this shows the ignorance of this contractor of lies and falsehood about what obtains in the Commission. These liars will invent any imaginable title or nomenclature to suit their purpose.
6. The source of the alleged SMS for the notice of meeting, and its distribution to the imaginary recipients can be verified from the network
provider used, if such a message was ever sent from the telephone of Mr. Patta, and we hope that they will be ready to come and substantiate it.
7. I have never called any Electoral Officer or staff of the Commission to work on “Election Materials”. I am however aware of a meeting of some Electoral Officers, scheduled for Monday 1, April 2019 for the filing of replies to election petitions before the expiration of time as provided in the Electoral Act. This meeting was not also called by me as it is strictly a
legal matter.
8. It would be recalled that the same lies were concocted when the Commission’s vehicle carrying out a nationally authorized reverse logistics duty was involved in an accident on Oku- Abak Highway. These lie spinners had alleged in a paid advert that they “interviewed” INEC drivers involved in the said accident, who were critically ill and unconscious in the hospital, who never spoke to anyone, and that the said drivers “confessed” to tampering with the ballot papers of a particular party in
the state. These were also a pack of lies.
9. The Commission then promptly issued a statement which shut down their balloon of lies and put the records straight, and also took the step of writing to the police for investigation. They are at it again. The objective of these liars and their sponsors, is to dent the image of the Commission,and cast aspersion on my person, and office as the Administrative Secretary, by their cheap campaign of calumny. I am a responsible and
law abiding officer of the Commission and have never be found wanting for any electoral fraud now or in the past.
10. I work under a strict, responsible and knowledgeable Resident Electoral Commissioner, whose public records are known nationwide.
11. It is not a coincidence that this publication is made on a ‘’Fool’s Day’’
(April Fool) to deceive the people.
12. I wish to state unequivocally again, that these allegations are false and should be disregarded as the materials of the Commission have never been tampered with and are open to inspection if and when authorized by a competent authority.
Anthony Bariza Patta
Administrative Secretary
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