A former federal lawmaker in Abia, Uko Nkole, on Saturday, charged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to put necessary measures in place to ensure credible elections in 2027.

Mr Nkole, who represented Arochukwu/Ohafia Federal Constituency from 2015 to 2023 on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) platform, made the charge in an interview with journalists at his Abam country home in Arochukwu Local Government Area.

He said INEC should do everything within its statutory responsibility to ensure transparency and a credible exercise.

He warned that Nigerians were not ready to accept anything short of free, fair and credible elections.

Mr Nkole is the candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) for Abia North senatorial district.

He said that Nigerians were consciously watching “with eagle eye” to see how INEC would fare in 2027 and urged the commission to learn from the gaps of 2023.

According to him, INEC should have conducted a postmortem on the 2023 polls by now because Nigerians deserve to know what went wrong and what has been fixed.

Mr Nkole argued that elections were about recruiting leaders who could change people’s fortunes.

He described NDC as “the youngest and fastest-growing political party in Nigeria”.

He emphasised that the party’s national prominence peaked with the entrance and emergence of former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, as its presidential candidate for 2027.

Mr Nkole said NDC was careful in screening aspirants to ensure that candidates with capacity and stability emerged.

He explained why the party’s governorship candidate in Abia appeared less visible, saying that the party was adhering strictly to electoral laws to avoid litigation.

On why he was preparing to go to the Senate after eight years in the House of Representatives, Mr Nkole said his goal was to expand his Midas touch.

“My footprints in Arochukwu/Ohafia remain unmatched by my predecessors and successors.

“Most of my signature federal projects have remained stagnant since I left office. I want to bring back electricity to larger communities in Abia North,” he said.

He decried the deplorable state of federal roads in the area, such as the Isuikwuato-Acha and Ezeukwu- Isuikwuato roads.

Mr Nkole, who claimed that the people still lived in squalor, said that such conditions should not exist in modern Nigeria while other senatorial districts enjoyed federal benefits.

He promised to facilitate vertical transfer of service for Abia North civil servants, insisting that he did the same while in the House.

“Permanent secretaries and directors in the federal civil service drive federal projects. Where are Abia North indigenes in the system?” he said.

(NAN)