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The People Democratic Party members from Abia State
serving at the National Assembly have warned of an impending electoral
crisis following the disappearance of voter registers in 12 out of the
17 local government areas of the state.

In a letter signed by the caucus to the Chairman of
the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Maurice Iwu, at
the weekend, they demanded that the anomaly be immediately corrected
before it escalates into a major crisis in the 2011 elections, adding
that the people will not tolerate the “Anambra experience.”

“If not corrected, millions of registered voters in
the state could be in clear and present danger of being
disenfranchised,” the group said in the letter.

The letter was signed by two senators; Nkechi Nwaogu
and Enyinnaya Abaribe, and six representatives, Eziuche Ubani, Kalu
Uduma, Chinenye Ike, Nkiru Onyejiocha, Nnenna Elendu-Ukeje and Uzoma
Abonta.

The group complained that after they discovered about
the missing registers, “Further checks at the state headquarters of
INEC in Umuahia could not unearth any concrete reason for the loss of
the registers of about 75 percent of local governments in the state.

Worse, contrary to the assurances that the commission
has a back up of the data base of the registered voters; we have since
discovered that the data base available is for only five local
governments i.e. Aba North, Aba South, Umuahia North, Umuahia South and
Ohafia,” the group wrote.

‘We don’t want Anambra experience’

“Made wise by what happened in the recent
governorship elections in Anambra State where a large population of
voters could not vote, we have resolved that we will not stand by while
our people are in very great danger of not exercising their rights to
elect their leaders.”

They added that should elections be held in the state now, voters in the concerned local governments will be disenfranchised.

They also said that the ongoing registration of
voters cannot address this anomaly since no database exists in the
local governments.

“In the light of the above, we the members of the National Assembly
PDP caucus from Abia State demand that INEC conduct a fresh and full
review of the voters register, whereby every eligible voter in Abia
State would be registered afresh.”