The Edo State Independent Electoral Commission has declared Tom Obaseki, brother of Governor Godwin Obaseki and 17 other candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party winners of the 18 chairmanship seats in the Edo State Local council election held on Saturday.
The EDSIEC Chairman, Justice James Oyomire (retd.), said that the PDP candidates were declared winners having scored the highest number of valid votes in the election.
Seven political parties initially registered to participate in the elections. However, on the eve of the election, four parties; the Action Alliance, Allied Peoples Movement, Accord, and African Democratic Congress, withdrew and supported the PDP.
The contest for the 18 local government chairmanship and 192 councillors seats was then left between the ruling PDP, APC, and the Labour Party.
The chairmen and their vice were presented with their certificates of return by the EDSIEC chairman.
Speaking on the election, Governor Obaseki, on Sunday, said the performance of the PDP in the local government election in the state showed the party’s dominance, noting that the outcome of the election is a reflection of the wish of the majority of Edo people.
Obaseki told journalists at the Diocese of Benin (Anglican Communion), St. Peter’s Anglican Church, during the 15th memorial thanksgiving service of his father, late Pa Roland Obaseki, .
He said, “We have a situation room where we monitored the election process across the state and want to thank the people. You can see that we are democratically mature in Edo State, in terms of the way the election was conducted.
“I was surprised at the diligence of the Edo State Independent Electoral Commission. I went around and saw the number of polling units mounted by EDSIEC and the various electoral officers in the three metropolitan local government areas and it was quite impressive. The turnout was fair as expected and it shows that we can conduct elections without disrupting economic and social activities.
“The people voted and went about their various activities for the weekend. Overall, I believe we have done well. It was a free and fair election. The mass participation and dominance of PDP as a party in the State was clearly exhibited in this election.”
Obaseki further noted, “I have not seen an election that has not been challenged even the one in America was challenged. That is why provisions are made in the law and in the process; for tribunals to review and adjudicate on cases and complaints from contestants.
The All Progressives Congress state Chairman, Col. David Imuse (retd.), described the election as a scam, noting that the result should not be allowed to stand.
He said, “This election is a scam and a charade. They brought insufficient ballot papers and no single result sheet. How can you conduct an election when there is no result sheet? It happened in the entire Edo Central senatorial district.
“I am calling from Ekpoma, and the same thing is happening in Esan North East, Esan West, and all over the state. I don’t see how an election can take place without result sheets.”
However, an LP chieftain in the state, Dr Oghogho Okundaye described the LG election in the state as not just a sham but a rape of democratic principles.
Okundaye said it was unfortunate that an important election, meant to elect officers close to the grassroots is still being conducted in such an uncivilised and barbaric manner.
While condemning the exercise in its entirety, Okundaye said the animalistic tendency that was exhibited in the field which led to many LP members getting injured was very unfortunate.
He added, “I am calling on EDSIEC to cancel the election because it was obvious that the exercise was characterised by fraud, electoral malpractices and as such was not free and fair.
“Members of the ruling PDP allegedly backed by external forces freely used dangerous weapons to scare Labour Party members from the field, carted away voting materials in some areas, and wrote results in some others.
“The Labour Party has become a thorn in the flesh of other parties hence they are using all undemocratic means to deny the party victory as seen in the way the government manipulated the local election.”
He urged members of the LP not to take laws into their own hands but to remain calm as the civilised nature of the party cannot be compared with the thuggery approach of the PDP which they displayed during the sham elections.
He also called on the security agencies to search, arrest, and prosecute individuals in possession of weapons used to attack the LP members and their agents.
As of the time of this report, the figures for Oredo Local government, won by Obaseki have not been released.
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