The diplomatic missions of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and more Civil Society Organisations and the Nigeria Bar Association, have added their voices to the just concluded Edo governorship election picking holes in some of the electoral processes but advising aggrieved persons to seek redress through the judicial process. In their separate
The diplomatic missions of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and more Civil Society Organisations and the Nigeria Bar Association, have added their voices to the just concluded Edo governorship election picking holes in some of the electoral processes but advising aggrieved persons to seek redress through the judicial process.
In their separate reports on the Edo governorship election, the bodies were in agreement that the election was generally peaceful but noted some irregularities like the late arrival of electoral materials on election day and problems at the collation centre. They, however, advised for the administrative and legal procedure in seeking redress.
Both the United States (US) Mission in Nigeria and the United Kingdom restated their commitment to supporting free, fair, transparent, and credible elections in Nigeria. The NBA, Situation Room, and CDD – observed the late arrival of officials and materials adding that voting materials and officials arrived late in many polling units, particularly within Benin City, Edo State capital.
Some of the reports also noted that: “It was observed that these delays were caused by logistics challenges that hindered the smooth commencement of the voting process,” while also observing instances of vote buying at polling units. “Several attempts were observed where political party agents discreetly tried to influence voters with monetary incentives,” the reports said.
Another point that cut across the Civil Society Organisation reports was that of voter apathy in the election, explaining that the number of voters who turned out at polling units during the election was “notably low”, considering the number of registered voters. It’s been reported that voter turnout was about 22 percent of registered voters.
The NBA, Situation Room, and CDD in their reports also observed that the use of technology in the conduct of the election was far from meeting expectations. The NBA specifically observed that although the Biometric Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices functioned effectively in most polling units, they recorded technical hitches in some areas.
The summarised reports are as follows:
United States (US) Comments Edo Voters During the Election
The United States said the 21 September 2024 governorship election was widely peaceful. In a statement, the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Richard Mills, commended the people of Edo State for organizing themselves in an orderly manner.
He called for calm following the announcement of the keenly contested poll that made Senator Monday Okpebholo, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), emerge as the winner of the election. “The U.S. Mission in Nigeria commends the people of Edo State for the widely peaceful conduct of gubernatorial elections on September 21 and reiterates calls for calm following the announcement of results,” the statement reads.
The ambassador also commended the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, calling for calm among all stakeholders. “We commend Governor Obaseki’s appeal for peace and urge all stakeholders, including INEC, to support established electoral processes and respect legal procedures to challenge results.
“Transparency and due process are crucial to maintaining public confidence in any democratic system,” Mr. Mills added that the US is committed to supporting free, fair, transparent, and credible elections in Nigeria. Of credible elections and again raises questions about election credibility in Nigeria: “As with recent elections, INEC’s ability and willingness to conduct credible elections in Nigeria remains questionable.” Said the statement.
The British High Commission Describes Edo Election as Largely Peaceful.
In a statement on Wednesday, “The UK commends the largely peaceful conduct of the elections and the voters of Edo State for their participation,” the statement read.
The All Progressives Congress candidate, Monday Okpebholo, was declared the winner of the poll after securing 291,667 votes, defeating the Peoples Democratic Party’s Asue Ighodalo, who garnered 247,274 votes. Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party finished a distant third with 22,763 votes.
The UK Commission encouraged parties with grievances over the election outcome to utilise established legal channels to address their concerns.
They stressed that the Independent National Electoral Commission and other relevant authorities should handle all complaints with transparency and fairness.
“Electoral and legal processes exist to address any challenges or disputes, and we encourage the authorities, including INEC, to examine all concerns transparently and in good faith,” the commission assured that it would continue to monitor the situation closely in Edo State.
NBA Faults Late Arrival of Officials and Materials
In its report jointly signed by Bolatumi Animashaun, the leader of NBA’s election monitoring team, and Mobolaji Ojibara, the general secretary noted the late arrival of officials and materials adding that voting materials and officials arrived late in many polling units, particularly within Benin City, Edo State capital.
“It was observed that these delays were caused by logistics challenges that hindered the smooth commencement of the voting process,” The association also said they observed that in a few polling units, neither INEC personnel nor electoral materials were deployed.
“In Egor Ward I, Polling Unit 30, for instance, there were no election materials or INEC officials at all, effectively preventing any voting activity from taking place in this polling unit. This lack of preparedness in certain areas is a serious issue that needs to be addressed to ensure elections run smoothly”, The report also observed that there were instances of vote buying at polling units.
“Several attempts were observed where political party agents discreetly tried to influence voters with monetary incentives,”. It expressed worry that despite efforts to prevent it, money has continued to influence fairness and transparency in Nigeria’s elections.
The NBA also stated that there was voter apathy in the election, explaining that the number of voters who turned out at polling units during the election was “notably low”, considering the number of registered voters. The NBA also said that although the Biometric Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices functioned effectively in most polling units, they recorded technical hitches in some areas.
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) advised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prioritise the timely deployment of election materials and personnel to avoid delays in subsequent polls. In addition, the Association also said there was a need for “intensified” voter education campaigns to restore public trust in the electoral process and encourage greater voter participation, especially among women and youth.
Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room Faults Collation of Results
The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room faulted the collation of results. Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on the election, Ms. Mimidoo Achakpa, the co-convener of the Situation Room, said the provisions of the Electoral Act and guidelines of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the collation process were compromised in the election.
She noted that the collation process was not transparent, adding that it was not open to representatives of the various candidates in the election. “In addition, it lacks transparency in the application of the provision of the Electoral Act and the INEC Guidelines on over-voting and cancellation of results from polling units,” Ms. Achakpa said.
“This raised a major question on the lack of clarity and uniformity in the application of the rule on cancellation of ballots across different LGAs. “Indeed, the report of many collation venues operating in darkness is also questionable.”
Ms. Achakpa said reports of Situation Room member organizations revealed contradictions between the results declared and what was declared at the polling unit level in some LGAs. She said the occurrence was particularly observed in Egor, Ikpoba Okha, Oredo, Esan West, and Ovia south-west LGAs.
“There were several reports of over-voting as revealed by findings from the various observation hubs, including the CDD-West Africa’s Election Analysis Centre (CDD-EAC), Over-voting was reported from more than 370 polling units across the 18 LGAs of the state by our observers. “It is our observation that the Edo State Governorship election 2024 failed to fulfill the requirement of the conduct of credible elections and again raises questions about election credibility in Nigeria.
Edo Governorship Election Marred by Over-voting, Low Turnout -CDD
The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD-West Africa) Election Analysis Centre (EAC) said last Saturday’s off-cycle governorship election in Edo State was marred by widespread over-voting and low voter turnout among other critical incidences. This is contained in the post-election statement of the election presented on Monday in Abuja and signed by Prof. Adele Jinadu, the Chair, CDD-EAC.
Speaking on INEC Result Viewing Portal (iReV) performance, Prof. Jinadu said the CDD-EAC observed upload of blurry results in Ozolua Primary School II, Abumwenre, Okokhua ward/RA 09, Ovia North-East LGA; while results from various polling units (PUs) in Etsako East; Weppa Registration Area, PU at Osholo primary school, Osholo were observed as over-voting.
“INEC also uploaded a result where the votes recorded for the APC were higher than the accredited number of voters, with 213 accredited voters, but 352 votes for APC and 52 PDP in Weppa registration Area, Etsako East Local Government.
“Similar cases were also recorded in Okpella IV, Iddo Sabo registration area, where despite 250 voters being accredited, 263 were reported to have voted for APC and 97 for PDP; in Okpella IV ward 8, and the PU at open Space by Elite Secondary School, where despite the form recording 251 accredited voters, the APC polled 344 voters, and the PDP recorded 41.
He said: “For example, voter turnout appears to be concerningly low, despite a high collection of PVCs. In Edo Central, despite 87% of PVCs collected, turnout is a paltry 25%. A similar trend obtains in Edo North, where despite 94% of PVCs collected, turnout is 33%.
