The Edo State governorship election has once again showcased Nigeria’s mastery of chaotic elections. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Campaign Council isn’t holding back on their accusations, claiming that the collation process was hijacked by none other than the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) itself. According to the PDP, INEC has effectively thrown its own rulebook out the window in an attempt to give the All Progressives Congress (APC) an unfair advantage.
In a fiery press conference at the PDP Situation Room in Government House, Benin City, Ahmadu Fintiri, the Governor of Adamawa State and Chairman of the Campaign Council, didn’t mince words. He called out INEC for its illegal interference in several local government areas, accusing them of violently disrupting the collation process. That’s right, violent disruption, because apparently, fair elections are too much to ask for in Edo State.
Fintiri specifically pointed to Edo South, where collation processes in Oredo, Ikpoba-Okha, and Egor were conveniently halted and moved to the INEC State Headquarters. Why? Because an Assistant Inspector General (AIG) reportedly gave the order, completely disregarding the legal framework for collation. This blatant move, the PDP claims, was a violation of the Electoral Act, and a brazen effort to sidestep transparency.
But it didn’t stop there. When PDP agents arrived at the INEC State Headquarters in Aduwawa, they weren’t allowed in. That’s right, PDP representatives were left standing outside, while APC agents were given the red-carpet treatment and allowed unfettered access to the premises. Apparently, the concept of neutrality outlined in the Electoral Act is more of a suggestion than a rule for INEC.
It said, “In Edo South, local government collation processes were stopped in Oredo, Ikpoba-Okha, and Egor and moved illegally to the State Headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Benin on the instructions of an Assistant Inspector General (AIG) in complete breach of the statutory collation process.
“Affected Party Agents and representatives were then ordered to converge on the INEC State Headquarters in Aduwawa, Ikpoba Okha Local Government Area for the completion of the collation exercise. Upon arrival, agents of the PDP were not allowed into INEC State Office for the exercise. On the other hand, agents of the APC were allowed unfettered access to the INEC premises to participate in the collation process. This was also in breach of the Electoral Act section on neutrality as well as the rules and regulations published for these elections.
“At about 9 pm senior party officials of the All Progressives Congress (APC) accompanied by the police stormed the Etsako West Local Government collation centre and began shooting indiscriminately. As a result of the attack, the council Vice Chairman, Honorable Benji Ojetu was left in critical condition from a shooting injury. Because of this assault, the expected results from Wards 7 and 11 were not delivered.
Meanwhile, over at the INEC state office, the police had set up a fortress-like 2km barricade, effectively cutting off access to the area. It was so bad that it took Governor Godwin Obaseki himself to storm the gates and make his displeasure known to INEC. The PDP made it clear that this barricade was just another tactic in a long line of efforts to prevent their agents from observing the collation process.
The PDP isn’t asking for much, just a restoration of the collation process in line with the Electoral Act and the rules and regulations that INEC so conveniently seems to forget when it suits them. But let’s be honest, demanding transparency and fairness in a Nigerian election is almost like asking the rain not to fall, it’s a nice thought, but it probably won’t happen.
One has to wonder, if elections are handled like this in Edo, what does that say about the state of democracy in the rest of the country?
