- PDP kicks as INEC declares election inconclusive
By Banji Ayoola
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, today faulted the non declaration of the results of the last Saturday’s senatorial election in Ondo South Senatorial District, which it believed was won by its candidate, Otunba Nicholas Tofowomo.
At a press conference in Akure, which was addressed by the Coordinator, PDP Presidential Campaign Committee in Ondo State, Mr Eyitayo Jegede, SAN, the party appealed to the commission to respect the will of the people and declare its candidate winner of the election.
The press conference followed the declaration of the district’s election as inconclusive by INEC.
It appealed to INEC against truncating the nation’s democracy, even as it alleged that the commission was recalling from the field, some adhoc staff and youth corps members who worked diligently for reasons best known to the commission.
According to Jegede, PDP won eleven out of the state’s 18 Local Governments, as he appealed to INEC to release the result of Ondo South Senatorial District.
There are six Local Governments in the District – Ile Oluji/Oke Igbo, Odigbo, Irele, Okitipupa, Ilaje, Ese Odo. In the result, he said that PDP won in all the six Local Governments, noting that the job of INEC is to sum up the figures to make appropriate returns.
He said that the Local Governments won are known to the people, as he accused some officials of pulling some unnecessary strings, rather than accept the reality and the outcome of the elections. He insisted that the Returning Officer and INEC must do what is just and right.
Jegede alleged that some adhoc staff and youth corps members were being recalled to INEC office for reasons best known to them.
He appealed to INEC not to truncate democracy but allow the will of the people prevail.
INEC ha declared the Ondo South senatorial election inconclusive as follows
PDP….. 79,029 votes ( Nicolas Tofowomo )
APC….. 51,993 votes (Senator Omogunwa)
Margin: 27,036 votes
Outstanding votes: 28, 047 votes
But Jegede explained that the result made available through party agents showed that Tofowomo had the highest number of votes in all the six local governments in the senatorial district.
He said that report reaching the party had indicated that the returning officer was under pressure to withhold the result and thus refused to declare Tofowomo as winner.
Jegede, the state’s former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice urged INEC Chairman, Prof. Mammud Yakubu not to allow any interference hinder the electoral process that favoured the PDP senatorial candidate in the district.
He said: “ Why we are here today is to call on INEC and returning officer to, in the interest of fair play, release the return of the PDP senatorial candidate in the southern senatorial zone.
For records, there are six local governments in the senatorial district and in each of these local governments ,the results as declared by the collation officers in all local governments ,PDP has emerged with the highest number of votes.
Expectedly, the job of the returning officer is to sum up the result and make the pronouncement and declaration of the winner.
We are aware that some officials are taking instructions from other people who have no business with the collation of results .” Jegede said .
Jegede noted that the party was suprised that INEC declared the election inconclusive.
According to him, “We call on INEC to resist the temptation and do the right thing.”
The press conference was attended the PDP Vice National Chairman, South west, Dr Eddy Olafeso, Ondo State PDP Chairman Engineer Clement Faboyede, former Speaker, Ondo State House of Assembly, Mrs Jumoke Akindele, Zonal Publicity Secretary, Mr Ayo Fadaka, Senator Ayo Akinyelure and Tofowomo himself.
Before the election was declared inconclusive, the PDP Candidate, Tofowomo was leading in the results declared across the six local government areas with 79,029 votes, while the APC candidate and incumbent senator, Yele Omogunwa scored 51,993.
INEC returning officer for the district, Professor Kayode Onifade said elections were cancelled in 42 polling units due to some alleged irregularities.
He said a winner could not be declared when the total number of registered voters in the cancelled polling units which is 28,047, were above the margin between the PDP and the APC. The margin stood at 27,036 votes.
Meanwhile, the campaign organization of the PDP candidate has rejected the decision of INEC to declare the senatorial election inconclusive, describing it as plans to undermine the decisions of voters in the area.
In an Interview, the spokesman of the campaign, Olumide Akinrinlola wondered why the INEC would cancel votes in polling units in senatorial election alone, but declared winner in all the three House of Representatives seats in the district in an election held simultaneously.
Meanwhile, INEC has declared Senator Ayo Akinyelure of the PDP winner of the Ondo Central Senatorial District in the last Saturday’s election.
INEC Returning officer, Prof. A.B Bello said Akinyelure polled 67,994 votes to beat the incumbent Senator Tayo Alasoadura of the APC who polled 58,092 votes and the former Governor Olusegun Mimiko of the Zenith Labour Party,, ZLP who got 56,628 votes.
Also, Mr Omolafe Adedayo of the PDP also won election to the seat of the Akure South/Akure North Federal Constituency with 48,595 votes to beat the current House of Representatives Member, Mr Afe Olowookere of the APC who polled 29,171 votes .
But the Commission had on Monday in Okitipupa, declared Ondo South Senatorial District election inconclusive.
Otunba Nicholas Tofowomo of the Peoples Democratic Party polled 79,029 votes, while his closest rival and incumbent, Yele Omogunwa of the All Progressives Congress, scored 51,993 votes in Saturday’s National Assembly elections.
Prof. Kayode Onifade, the INEC Returning Officer for Ondo South, also of the Department of Micro-Biology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, who declared the election inconclusive, sighted various irregularities.
Onifade pointed out that the number of cancelled votes of 28,047 was higher than 27,036 votes margin between the two leading parties, PDP and APC.
He said registered voters were 576,733, while accredited voters for the election were 196,282 in the six Local Government Areas that make up the District: Okitipupa, Irele, Odigbo, Ilaje, Ese-Odo and Ile Oluji/Oke-Igbo.
He added that elections were cancelled in 56 Polling Units in five LGAs: Ilaje: 42; Irele: four; Okitipupa: six; Odigbo: one; and Ese-Odo: three.
He also pointed out various irregularities ranging from voters refusal to use card readers, over voting of accredited voters, snatching of ballot boxes and violence among others which marred the credibility of the polls.
Onifade said: “About 56 polling units were cancelled in five LGAs and several electoral irregularities marred the conduct of the polls.
“As the numbers of cancelled votes of 28,047 was more than the margin of the leading votes of 27,036, I hereby declare the election inconclusive.”
Odigbo and Ile-Oluji/Oke-Igbo LGAs turned in their results very late in the night, which delayed collation of results at the Stella Maris College Collation Centre in Okitipupa.
