Tonye Cole: PDP sent thugs to slap, attack me at INEC office

The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the just-concluded election in Rivers State, Tonye Cole, has accused the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of sending hoodlums to attack him at the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

The Star had earlier reported that one person was injured on Monday after some members of the APC and PDP clashed in Port Harcourt over the inspection of electoral materials used for the March 18 governorship election in Rivers State.

Speaking on the incident, Cole said the thugs were sent by the PDP to attack him and his team to prevent them from accessing the INEC office in the state capital.

The APC gubernatorial candidate, who disclosed that he went to the INEC office alongside the APC chairman in Rivers State and other officials, said he was injured by stones hurled at him, adding that he was slapped by the thugs.

READ ALSO: One injured as PDP, APC members clash in Rivers

He added that he went to the INEC office to obtain documents used for the election to file a petition to challenge the declaration of the PDP candidate, Siminialayi Fubara, as the winner of the governorship election.

Cole further stated that he was denied access to the electoral materials at the office of the electoral umpire last Friday, saying “they have not given us a single one”.

“We said we were coming back today (Monday) and because we said we are coming back today, the PDP organised thugs everywhere to prevent us from getting to the INEC office.

“I wasn’t deterred and so I went with my party chairman, the women leader, the youth leader, and senior officials of the APC to the INEC office.

“They had barricaded the road from GRA Junction, everywhere boys, girls. They began to assault me, I came out and a woman began to drag my shirt, they pulled me from the back, first, they were throwing water then they began to throw food and the next minute they started throwing stones.

“The next thing after that, we started hearing gunshots, it took my security people to forcefully evict me.

“They destroyed our vehicles, they injured me. They slapped me, they punched me, they pulled my shirt, they dragged me, and then threw stones at me until I was injured in the back,” Cole disclosed.

The Star