Ondo Election Tribunal receives nine petitions
The women’s wing of the Peoples Democratic Party in Kaduna State, on Thursday, staged a peaceful protest to express their displeasure over the governorship election results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission in the state.
The PUNCH reports that the INEC declared Uba Sani of the All Progressives Congress winner of the March 18 election after polling a total of 730,002 votes while his closest rival, Isah Kudan of the Peoples Democratic Party, scored 719,196 votes.
The Labour Party candidate, Jonathan Asake, polled 58,283 to come third while the New Nigeria Peoples Party candidate, Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi, came to a distant fourth with 21,405 votes.
Inscription on some of the placards carried by the women read, “No election rigging”, “Kaduna State has spoken”, “Give us who we voted”, “Kaduna people elected, INEC selected”.
A former women leader in the state, Aisha Ibrahim, disclosed to journalists that residents of the state voted for Kudan and wondered why the electoral body favoured Sani of the APC.
“The people of Kaduna State came out Saturday, March 18 to massively voted for Isa Ashiru, the PDP gubernatorial candidate. Everybody heard the result and wandered why INEC should change the result in favour of the APC candidate.”
Also, former House of Assembly member, Maria Dogo, said INEC should rectify the election results from polling units.
“INEC should refer itself to the server to get the correct result of the election from every polling unit to avoid any controversy.
“It is unbecoming of INEC and we will employ every legal means to reclaim our mandate. Nigerians are tired to be taken aback 200 years ago instead of progressing and so, they can not continue robbing us of our choices,” she said.
The PUNCH reports the state chairman of the PDP, Felix Hyet, had described the APC victory as a “daylight robbery.”
He alleged that INEC was complicit in denying the people of the state what they actually voted for, and was inconsistent in declaring results.
Ondo Election Tribunal receives nine petitions
Meanwhile, Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Ondo on Thursday said it had received nine petitions following the February 25 National Assembly elections in the state.
Secretary of the tribunal, Mr Musa Adam, told the News Agency of Nigeria that seven of the petitions were on the House of Representatives election and two on the Senate.
Adam said that Olusegun Phillips-Alonge, the candidate of New Nigeria Peoples Party in Ondo North Senatorial district, had filed a petition challenging the All Progressives Congress Olajide Ipinsigba’s election.
On the part of the Labour Party candidate for Ondo Central, Mr Morounfoluwa Bademosi, Adam said a petition had been filed against the election of Mr Adeniyi Adegbonmire of the APC.
Other petitions he announced include those challenging the elections in Akoko South East/Akoko South west, Ese Odo/Ilaje, Okitipupa/Irele and Ondo East/Ondo West federal constituencies.
Adam said other federal constituencies include, Akure South/Akure North, Akoko South East/Akoko South West and Akoko North East/Akoko North West.
According to him, the tribunal was already expecting petitions on the outcome of the House of Assembly election.
He noted that aggrieved candidates had 21 days from the announcement of election results to file a petition before the tribunal.
NAN
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