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Mrs. Joan Onyemaechi Mrakpor, in a fit of bad temper and political desperation, threw caution to the and disrupted what could have been a peaceful, fair and credible primary election for the emergence of a candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Aniocha-Oshimili Federal House of Representatives elections of 2019.
Mrs. Mrakpor, who represents Aniocha-Oshimili in the House of Representatives, just as the votes were being counted at the Cenotaph, Asaba, venue of the primary election, she suddenly sprang up like one stung by a bee, went straight to PDP national officials conducting the elections and began to make complaints. She refused all entreaties to leave the scene and return to her seat.
Instead, she grew wilder, getting terribly agitated and furious. She entered into an uncontrollable argument with Mrs. Uzo Nwandu, the PDP returning office. As she was making her arguments and making gesticulations, she ranted uncontrollably, and within a split second, her irate thugs and supporters ran furiously into the arena, attacking the officials, destroying the tables and chairs used in conducting the primary.
Then gunshots rented the air and there was pandemonium; the people scampered, amid tear gas canisters released by the police. The gunshots became sporadic and sustained, as policemen took the PDP officials away in their vehicles to safety.
Before Mrs. Mrakpors ugly and shameful scene of disruption, the votes and scores that had been counted showed that stand of the contestants as follows:
• Peter Onwusanya 12 votes;
• Ikechukwu Onwuadiegwu one vote;
• Mrs. Mrakpor 226 votes.
• Ndudi Elumelu (votes earned by him could not be counted because of Mrs. Mrakpor’s bad behaviour and disruption.)
• Total valid votes 516
• Void votes 12.
Many aged people fainted and some of them had to be taken to the hospital following their encounter with tear gas and injuries suffered during the melee.