Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Maurice Iwu, yesterday in Abuja, reviewed the February 6 ,2010 gubernatorial election in Anambra State and commended his commission for a job well done even as he explained why the incumbent Governor, Peter Obi of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) defeated the other 24 candidates in the poll.

Speaking at an interactive session with journalists, the INEC boss fingered greed and poor organization as being responsible for the opposition parties in Anambra state’s inability to dislodge the incumbent.
He wondered how the 24 parties, that schemed to unseat Obi, could have achieved their aim when in effect; they had spilt votes that could have come to a united opposition.

Drawing examples from Kenya, Iwu noted that opposition parties in that country found it difficult to dislodge the ruling party of Daniel Arap Moi until they fused into a united front.
According to him, simple arithmetic indicates that it would be difficult to dislodge Obi and APGA with 24 political parties contending against him.

He noted that the percentage of Anambra people that have so far collected their permanent voters card stands at a mere 33 percent, saying the figure was even lower than that of Sokoto state.

He however gave thumbs up to the people of the state for being civil in their conduct during and after the election. According to him, the incident of ballot box snatching was negligible adding that where it even occurred, the result was invalidated.
Iwu said the Anambra people displayed high level of comportment during the voting period and also lauded officers and men of the Nigerian police and the National Youth Service Corp for their role in ensuring that the election was peaceful.

His words "if there is any group of people that deserve my commendation, apart from the people of Anambra state, the police and officials of INEC, it is members of the NYSC.Those were a group of young men and women who showed extra ordinary commitment to their fatherland" .

Iwu, who further noted that hiccups witnessed during the election were merely administrative, noted that with the election, Nigerians have shown their readiness to be part of the democratic process and allow democracy take firm root in the country.
Though he accepted the fact of incomplete voters register, Iwu however explained that most people, who could not cast their votes on the day, were actually those who refused to take advantage of the window created by the commission after the voters’ revalidation exercise to have their names validated.
He disclosed that the commission had created opportunity for voters, whose names were missing on the register, to validate their data, adding however that the window was ignored, and that the commission was aware of efforts to inflate the voters register in Anambra state.

"There were some deliberate efforts to inflate and abuse the voters’ register. People registered all sorts of names and even inanimate objects in the effort to inflate the register," he stated.

Iwu said the commission worked ahead of those seeking to inflate the register to deny them of such opportunity.
Iwu, who also stressed the need for a national voters revalidation exercise, said the Commission will next month open its doors for voters to revalidate their names.
According to him, the commission will also next month, make public the guidelines for the next general election to facilitate early preparations. He said the process would start with a national stakeholder’s conference where some international figures would speak.

On the electronic system of voting, the INEC boss restated his belief that it remains the best option for elections in a country like Nigeria.
On the peaceful conduct of the Anambra election, he said it was an indication that Nigerians are ready to act differently if law and order is guaranteed.

It is not Iwu's job to speculate on the machinations of politics, nor is it his job to postulate on political strategy.

His should simply count the votes and keep his mouth shut.

Thats my state. We lead for others to follow. However (Cameroonian) Prof Iwu should kindly keep his advice to himself.