INEC has resumed the collation of results in the Ondo Governorship election after taking a short break. It’s no surprise that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is currently leading in all the 18 local government areas announced so far, with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) trailing behind in second place. The APC seems to have the game locked, as if it’s a one-party state.
The collation officer, Prof. Olayemi Akinwunmi, announced a recess earlier, citing the need for time to allow the results from the remaining local governments—Ilaje and Ese Odo—to arrive. Apparently, these areas are so far away from Akure, the capital city, that even time seems to move slower there.
In his words: “I think we can just adjourn till 12 noon please, two remaining local governments are not here yet, so we adjourn till 12 noon. The local governments, Ilaje and Ese Odo, are very far, so we need to give them time to arrive here, but we resume at 12 noon.”
So far, INEC has declared results from 15 local government areas, which include Ifedore, Ondo East, Ileoluji Oke-Igbo, Idanre, Irele, Akoko South West, Owo, Ondo West, Akoko South East, Akoko North West, Ose, Akoko North East, Akure South, Akure North, and Okitipupa. The remaining three areas left to be announced are Ilaje, Odigbo, and Ese Odo.
Interestingly, there was a bit of drama in Idanre, one of the local government areas where a PDP agent raised concerns about alleged electoral malpractices. The agent claimed there were issues of vote buying, ballot box snatching, and even the absence of voting in some areas. He made a bold request, asking the returning officer to reject the results from Idanre, which of course added a twist to the ongoing collation process.
Meanwhile, INEC’s National Commissioner, Prof. Kunle Ajayi, seemed rather confident when he spoke to Channels Television before the collation process resumed. He assured everyone that the final result would be declared by 6 a.m. at the latest, insisting, “I can assure you that until we declare the winner, we won’t leave here. We will wait until the last local government before we leave. I don’t have any fear that even by 6 a.m., maybe everything would have been over.”
With the APC leading and only three local governments left, it looks like a done deal for the ruling party. However, the tension in the air suggests we may still see a few surprises before the final results are announced.
