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Tension has enveloped Edo State as supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have stormed the headquarters of theIndependent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Benin, the state capital, to protest against the ongoing collation of the governorship election results in the state.
The results so far announced by the Electoral umpire before proceeding on a recess showed that the All Progressives Congress, APC, the major opposition party in Edo, is leading in the election, having won in 10 local government areas while the PDP won in six.
A post by Channels TV, via X, disclosed that the PDP supporters “stormed INEC headquarters in Benin City to protest Saturday’s governorship election results currently being collated at the state collation centre.”
Meanwhile, Civil Society Organisations on Sunday in Benin raised concern over the transparency of the ongoing results collation.
Six civil society groups in a joint statement urged security agencies to allow the media and observers full access to collation centres for transparency, noting that considering the way things currently stand, the credibility of the results collated is doubtful.
“We, the undersigned accredited civil society organizations, express concern over the transparency of the ongoing results collation for the 2024 Edo governorship election by INEC,” the statement, which was jointly signed by the Nigerian Civil Society Situation Room, Yiaga Africa, Kimpact Development Initiative, Nigerian Women Trust Fund, ElectHER, and TAF Africa.
“Reports of disruptions at collation centers, including intimidation of INEC officials and attempts to collate results against electoral provisions, have raised credibility concerns about the process.
“INEC’s statement acknowledging reports of result mutilation and its commitment to investigate any proven violations is a step in the right direction but needs prompt action.
“We urge INEC to invoke Section 65 of the Electoral Act 2022 to review declarations where results were not voluntarily declared or violated electoral provisions.
“Security agencies must ensure non-interference in the collation process, allowing party agents, the media, and observers full access to maintain transparency and uphold electoral integrity.”
Also, Asue Ighodalo, the candidate PDP in the Edo State governorship election, during a live press conference on Sunday, organised by the Edo PDP National Campaign Council expressed fears that the exercise might go down in history as the worst in Nigeria because of several alleged irregularities.
He cited numerous cases of alleged electoral infractions at polling units, including issues in Ikpoba/Okha Ologbo.
According to him: “The way this election is going, it is set to be the worst election in the history of this country. In Ikpoba/Okha Ologbo, the figure for accredited voters was NIL, but the results claimed the APC had 227 votes, while the PDP had 103. How is that even possible?”
