Edo Guber: ‘Procured INEC Officials Viciously Trampled With PDP Votes’ – Damagum Alleges

…Urges INEC To Review ‘Brazen Rigging’

The Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Umar Iliya Damagum has alleged that “procured officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) viciously trampled people’s votes during the governorship election that was held on Saturday in Edo State.

He as a result called for a review of the result, vowing that the PDP will take a firm stand to “retrieve the mandate of the people” freely given to its candidate, Asue Ighodalo.

Damagum who has been having a running battle with stakeholders and a section of the National Working Committee and the Board of Trustee described the election that INEC announced the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Monday Okpebholo as the winner, as “unacceptable”.

Some party stakeholders and supporters in Edo blamed the acting chairman for poor leadership and for courting more crisis which has robbed the PDP of waging a formidable opposition to the APC-led government.

Most especially, he’s accused of giving the party to the former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, who’s serving as a minister in the APC government. Wike had vowed the PDP candidate who was handpicked by the outgoing governor, Godwin Obaseki, would lose owing to their political differences.

The legacy group, which formed the PDP in Edo State was shut out by Obaseki and failed to produce the deputy governorship position for the election, a factor some stakeholders blamed for the defeat. The group is aligned with Wike’s strong group that controls the PDP in the South South zone

Rather than believing that Damagum was standing by the candidate of the party during the grand rally penultimate week to the election, they said Damagum was “playing to the gallery” and had nothing to lose if the PDP was defeated.

But the under pressure chairman has insisted he’s with the PDP while fighting to prolong his stay.

Addressing journalists on Monday during a press conference in Abuja, even as he is increasingly being abandoned by his NWC, he said it is with a deep sense of burden and serious concern for our Democracy and political stability of our dear nation that I address” the media.

He said that from unfolding political events in the country, the latest being “the brazen rigging of the Saturday, September 21, 2024 Edo State Governorship election by the APC in connivance with government-controlled agencies, it is clear that our democracy is under threat.”

Damagum said the “Edo State Governorship election was barefacedly compromised by the APC in collusion with unpatriotic security operatives and heavily procured officials of INEC, who viciously trampled on the votes of the people in defiance of the Law and total disregard to the Sovereign Will of the people of Edo State.

He recalled the “PDP had on several occasions alerted of this sinister plot by the APC to subvert the election, the roles allegedly being played by AIG Zone 7, Benneth Igwe and Edo State Commissioner of Police, CP Nemo Edwin-Iwo and the appointment of a known APC apologist and supporter, Dr. Anugbum Onuoha, as the Edo State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC).

“Several demands by our Party for the redeployment of these officials as well as the release of all arrested PDP members and supporters fell on deaf ears and tend to validate PDP’s suspicion of a top-level conspiracy to rig the Edo State governorship election.

“Nigerians and the world watched in horror as the APC-compromised security operatives and thugs unleashed terror, harass, arrest and detain PDP members and supporters, foisted siege mentality on the people and paved the way for APC agents and procured INEC officials to manipulate the ballot process, substitute genuine results from the Polling Units with fictitious figures and transferred the victory clearly won by our candidate, Asue Ighodalo to the defeated APC candidate, Monday Okpebholo.

“As Nigerians already know, despite the violence, intimidation and manipulations by the APC, results obtained from the Polling Units show that our candidate, Dr. Asue Ighodalo clearly won the election before the figures were altered at the State collation exercise in favour of the defeated APC candidate,” Damagum said.

He emphasised that the PDP “unequivocally rejects the final result of the Edo State Governorship election as declared by INEC as it did not meet the minimum standard for democracy having not reflected the expressed Will and aspiration of the people in line with provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022 and INEC Guidelines for State Governorship election.

“The PDP demands that INEC within the time stipulated by Section 65 of the Electoral Act, 2022 review the Edo State governorship election and announce results only as obtained from the genuine votes cast at the Polling Units.

“The PDP calls on all Nigerians and lovers of Democracy all over the world to stand up in solidarity with the people of Edo State in rejecting this assault on the democratic rights of the people as witnessed in the Edo State Governorship election.

“The people of Edo State clearly chose Dr. Asue Ighodalo as the next Governor of their State and only their Will as expressed at the Polling Units must be allowed to stand.

“The PDP charges the people of Edo State to remain resolute and undeterred as our Party takes sure and firm steps to retrieve the mandate with every means legal and available in a democracy.”