The Coalition of United Political Parties has announced that it will not engage in protests against the upcoming local government election on November 2, nor will it initiate any legal actions against the Chairman of the Abia State Independent Electoral Commission, Professor George Chima.
This decision comes in the wake of calls from the Action Alliance and the Allied People’s Movement for the removal of ABSIEC Chairman Professor George Chima. The two parties also urged a boycott of the elections and threatened legal action to prevent the local government elections, citing alleged high administrative fees charged by ABSIEC and other inconveniences.
In a statement on Saturday, CUPP representatives Joseph Ulu, State Secretary, and Larry Charles, Legal Adviser, rejected the AA and APM’s calls, asserting that such decisions did not originate from the CUPP secretariat. They emphasized that all political parties in the state have been treated fairly by ABSIEC and questioned the rationale behind the protests, boycotts, or demands for the removal of the ABSIEC Chairman.
“The emergence of ABSIEC’s administration of fees did not start with the present administration; rather, it has been in place for some time. With a downward review of the administrative fee, CUPP confidently states that it is the cheapest in the history of Abia local government elections,” the statement read.
The CUPP has firmly resolved not to participate in any protests or legal actions against ABSIEC and has called on security agents to be vigilant against individuals who might attempt to disrupt the peaceful conduct of the elections in Abia State.
The CUPP executives warned that the calls for protests, legal actions, and election boycotts could lead to serious political crises in Abia.