Governor Nyesom Wike has warned that university officials and lecturers in Rivers who rig elections in the state will get coup plotters’ punishment.

A coup is a treasonable offence punishable by death in the Nigerian Constitution.
The maximum penalty for an electoral offence is N50 million or “a term of imprisonment of not less than 10 years or both,” according to the Electoral Act 2010.  

At the sod-laying ceremony to construct the 9,200 capacity convocation arena of the University of Port Harcourt on Tuesday, Mr Wike said, “Let me warn: not one person will dare to rig elections in Rivers state. Not one person will dare it.

“I have told people: allow university community to produce those who will be leaders of this country.”

He added that election riggers are coup plotters, threatening to punish them with the death penalty.

“Don’t turn university community to be where you will have politicians who manipulate and change the mandate of the people. Anybody who does that, you know it is a coup, and you know the punishment for coup plotters,” he warned.

Mr Wike further said election results must be electronically transmitted, insisting he will resist any attempt to prevent electronic transmission of election results.

“INEC knows that they have to be prepared in 2023. And that is why we will resist any attempt for anybody to manipulate the amendment of the Electoral Act, to say that election results will not be transmitted electronically. That will not happen. If you want the vote of the people to count, the result must be transmitted electronically,” Mr Wike added.