The Labour Party in Rivers State has vehemently responded to allegations made by Chijioke Ihunwo, the factional Rivers State Chairman of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), asserting that he and unnamed accomplices manipulated election results during the 2023 general elections.
In a viral video circulating on various platforms, Ihunwo claimed that key figures, including the embattled Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Martins Amaewhule, and the representative for Obio/Akpor Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Okey Chinda, did not legitimately secure their victories. According to him, the Labour Party emerged as the clear winner in Rivers State.
In response to these claims, the Labour Party has doubled down on their stance, asserting that Ihunwo’s revelations only serve to confirm their longstanding assertion that they indisputably clinched victory in the state during the 2023 elections.
Gogo Wellington, the Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party in Rivers State, expressed the party’s perspective, stating, “This, to a large extent, goes to confirm what we have been saying since the conclusion of the 2023 presidential and gubernatorial elections, that the Labour Party undoubtedly won the elections here in Rivers State.”
Wellington went on to criticize the alleged collaboration between those he deemed “perpetrators of evil” and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), accusing them of undermining the will of the people by declaring election results in favor of certain candidates.
“As their fight deepens, more truth will be revealed,” added Wellington, emphasizing the casual admission in Ihunwo’s video where he claimed responsibility for manipulating election results. The Labour Party’s spokesperson lamented the situation, stating, “It is very sad that our democracy has plunged into this depth of misery.”
