With the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate, Professor Charles Soludo, coasting home to becoming the next governor of Anambra State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the Gubernatorial Elections there inconclusive on account of Elections not holding in Ihiala Local Government Area.
Though leading with 103,946 votes and having won the election in 18 out of the 21 LGAs of the state, with his closest rival, Valentine Ozigbo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) having polled scored 51,322 and won in only one LGA, Soludo will have to wait for the chunky 148,000 voters in Ihiala to vote at a later date.
The State Returning Officer for the election, Professor Florence Obi, said at about 22 minutes after midnight this Monday: “Based on constitutional provision and consideration of the Electoral Act as well as the revised regulations and guidelines for the conduct of elections issued by the commission, supplementary election is indicated for Ihiala Local Government Area,” the state returning officer, Mrs Obi said.
According to the Vice Chancellor of the University of Calabar, the constitutional provision to secure both the highest number of votes cast and 25 per cent of votes cast in at least two-third of the local government areas of the state must be met for anyone to be declared the winner.
She adds, “Therefore, it is important to complete the election in Ihiala to make this determination.”
However, believing his party has coasted home to victory, Chief Victor Oye, National Chairman of All Progressives Congress Alliance (APGA) has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for ensuring that Saturday’s Anambra governorship election was credible.
Speaking on Sunday with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka on Sunday, Oye said that Buhari had proved to be a father by giving the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) free hands to conduct the election.
“President Muhammadu Buhari has always been a father by allowing INEC to conduct free, fair and credible election in the country.
“He will also insist on allowing the people’s will to prevail and not the other way round.
“Left to some other people, the election will have been rigged in favour of another party.
“But he has always tell them to allow the choice of the people to prevail, that is why APGA is willing the election,” Oye said.
He commended residents of the state for the peaceful conduct of the election.
“Anambra people are known to be peaceful, the violence we had sometime ago was imported, our people are not in any way associated with violence,” he said.
Reacting to calls for supplementary election in some areas affected by malfunctioning of INEC voting equipment, Oye said such election would only enhance the victory of the party.
Expectedly the Anambra had hallmarks of a typical Nigerian election with vote-buying topping the list of irregularities.
Curiously, the top three candidates scored far less than they did in their primaries of their own parties, leaving room for speculations as to what exactly transpired.
There were other reports of violence, ballot-box snatching, and disappearance of voting materials, though security was tight generally and dreaded miscreants were kept generally at bay.
▪︎Additional reports by NAN