The Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party on Sunday cried foul as Governor Hope Uzodimma, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, was declared the winner of Saturday’s Governorship poll in Imo State by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The electoral body affirmed Uzodimma’s re-election, having won in all the 27 local government areas of the state.
The governor clinched a second term in office after scoring a total of 540, 008 votes, the commission stated.
In Kogi, the candidate of the APC, Usman Ododo, was declared the winner of the election with 446,237 votes.
Announcing the result late Sunday night, the state Returning Officer, Prof Johnson Urama, said Ododo was closely followed by the Social Democratic Party candidate, Muri Ajaka, who scored 259, 052 votes.
Dino Melaye of the PDP garnered 46,362 votes; Leke Bejide of the African Democratic Party, 21,891; and Adejo Okeme of the LP 567.
The total number of registered voters was 1,932,474, and accredited voters numbered 794,500.
The commission said 9,601 votes were rejected out of the 791,890 total votes cast.
In Bayelsa State, the INEC said the results from Brass and Southern Ijaw local government Areas of Bayelsa would be announced on Monday (today).
The Head of Department, Voter Education and Publicity INEC office, Yenagoa, Mr Wilfred Ifogah, announced to state party agents, election observers and journalists on Sunday that the collation of results would continue today.
Announcing Uzodimma’s victory, the Imo State Returning Officer for the election, Prof Abayomi Fasina, who is the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oye, Ekiti State, disclosed that Samuel Anyanwu of the PDP got 71, 503 votes while the Labour Party candidate, Athan Aconu, garnered 64, 081 votes.
The PDP and LP called for a total poll cancellation after the declaration.
They alleged that the security agents connived with INEC staff to allow members of the APC to rig the election.
Addressing journalists at a press conference, Anyanwu, while demanding the nullification of the election, said INEC and the security agents failed in their constitutional responsibility to deliver a credible election to the people of the state.
Instead, he alleged that the security agents protected INEC staff “as the APC members rewrote results.’’
Anyanwu said he and his party, the PDP, would not accept anything other than total cancellation of the poll.
The LP candidate, Achonu, vowed to seek redress at the election tribunal.
Addressing journalists at his Umulomo country home in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of the state on Sunday, he alleged that the election was “marred by irregularities, including vote-buying and physical assaults of LP agents, and thus deserving of outright cancellation.”
He further alleged that voting in many locations was done without the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System accreditation, contrary to the assurances by INEC before the election.
