Facts emerge on why inconclusive elections remain APC, INEC script against PDP
Though the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will on March 23, 2019 hold supplementary elections in the six states where the exercises were declared inconclusive, fresh observations suggest that the choice of inconclusive declarations are done to suit the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) as a party after all.
This is based on the findings that two elections that had exactly the same kind of results where the difference between the candidate on the lead and the second is less than total cancelled votes have been pointed out.
Case Study One: Ogun Governorship election result: Dapo Abiodun of APC got 241,670 votes to defeat Akinlade of APM who polled 222,153, leaving a margin of 19,517 votes. Knowing full well that the number of votes separating them is less than the cancelled votes, the electoral Act was not invoked possibly because the ruling party is winning.
Case Study Two: Orji Kalu of APC scored 30,201 to beat serving Senator Mao Ohuabunwa of PDP who scored 20,801. In the election, cancelled votes was 38,526, which is even more than the winner’s votes and more than the difference, yet INEC declared Kalu the winner of the election instead of an inconclusive election that should be rerun.
From all indications, the above scenarios played out in the gubernatorial elections in Kano, Bauchi, Sokoto, Benue, Adamawa and Plateau states’ which were all declared inconclusive when the PDP was on the lead. There is none of the cases where the APC and or another party is on the lead.
A statement issued by the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye said the “Supplementary elections will also hold in polling units in all states where state Assembly elections were declared inconclusive and winners could not be declared.”
In Kano State, the incumbent governor and candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje scored a total of 987,819 votes, while Abba Yusuf of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) scored the highest 1,014,474 votes leading with 26,655 with 141,694 votes as cancelled.
The same scenario played out in other five states that will be forced to governorship elections come March 23, 2019.
