The South West Presidential Contact Committee Group of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called for the removal of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega over what it described as his partisan gestures.

The group alleged that the removal was necessary due to Professor Jega’s “overwhelming bias in the distribution of the permanent voter cards (PVCs) to the detriment and marginalisation of about 16 million eligible voters of the zone.”

 The group, led by Chief Olabode George said this on Monday, in a signed statement, issued after its meeting in Lagos.

Others who signed the statement included the former Governor Gbenga Daniel, Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, Major-General Tajudeen Olanrewaju, Elder Joju Fadairo, Chief Adebisi Omoyeni and Ambassador Toye Olofintuyi.

Others are Senator Adefemi Kila, Chief Segun Adegoke, Prince Nekan Olateru-Olagbegi, Mr Kingsley Kuku, Chief Olayinka Omilani, Senator Olu Alabi, Dr Saka Balogun and Alhaji Mustapha Omokunmi.

The group also frowned at the intervention of former President Olusegun Obasanjo in the current saga, describing such intervention as unstatesmanly, personalised and, therefore, likely to provoke untoward events in this nation.

“In the light of the deliberate, overt and tendentious policies of Professor Jega pertaining to his partisan gestures, nuances, conflicting protestations and most especially his overwhelming partiality in the distribution of PVCs to the detriment and marginalisation of about 16 million eligible voters of South-West, we, the South-West Presidential Contact Committee Group, hereby appropriately resolves that Professor Jega, having failed decisively in his appointed role of a neutral, non-partisan electoral umpire, should, hereby be removed forthwith for gross dereliction of duty and deliberate partisan complicity,” the group said.

The South West PDP group, while justifying its position, contended that it was cruel and unforgiving to insinuate that the rescheduling of the election dates was done to favour the party.

According to the group, INEC, from all verifiable indices, was grossly unprepared to carry out a free and fair election as the published collection of the PVCs was deliberately skewed in favour of the North.

The group reiterated that that the rescheduling of the election dates was a patriotic and legitimate decision, which would prevent the disenfranchisation of about 34 per cent of Nigerian citizens, insisting President Goodluck Jonathan deserved the support of all meaning Nigerians in the challenges of nation building.

Speaking further, the PDP group castigated former President Obasanjo for the role he had played so far concerning the current challenges facing the country, saying that former President Obasanjo cannot and must not assume the role of the Nigerian overlord with infallible wisdom.