National Telescope national telescope newspaper
Kelvin Meluwa, ASABA |
Tensions flared at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters in the early hours of Sunday as members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) staged a protest, alleging attempts to compromise the Edo governorship election results.
The protesters, led by APC National Secretary, Mr. Surajudeen Adebola, voiced concerns over what they described as an abuse of office, claiming that the presence of Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, at the INEC office was an attempt to influence the outcome of the election.
Speaking to journalists during the protest, Mr. Adebola explained the party’s position:
He said, “We received credible information that Governor Obaseki was at the INEC office in the dead of the night. We have reason to believe there was an attempt to tamper with the results of this election, and we cannot sit by and allow such a travesty.
”The incident occurred while journalists and party agents were gathered at the INEC conference hall around 3:00 AM, waiting for the announcement of the election results.”
The protest intensified as APC members stormed the entrance, demanding transparency in the process.
Security forces, led by Deputy Inspector General of Police, Frank Mba, intervened, de-escalating the situation. Governor Obaseki was subsequently seen leaving the premises amidst the commotion.
In a related development, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Mr. Asue Ighodalo, also raised concerns over the relocation of the collation centres for Oredo and Ikpoba-Okha to the INEC headquarters.
He accused the electoral body of foul play, calling for a review of the decision.
According to him, “The sudden relocation of collation centres without due process raises a lot of suspicion,” Mr. Ighodalo said on Saturday night.
“We demand transparency and fairness in this process. Anything short of that will not be accepted.”
As of the time of filing this report, INEC is yet to respond to the allegations, and the announcement of results from the state collation centres is still pending.
