Ekiti: INEC suspends voting, declaration of winner indefinitely
From YINKA FABOWALE, DURO ADESEKO AND BOLU-OLU ESHO, OLUSOLA BALOGUN, Ado-Ekiti
Monday, April 27, 2009


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The pending re-run election in two wards in Oye Local Government Area of Ekiti State fixed for today has been postponed indefinitely by the Independent National Electoral Commissioner (INEC).

INEC Commissioner who took over the polls operations, Mr. Dayo Soyebi made the announcement on Sunday in Ado Ekiti, adding that, “A new date for the election will be communicated to the parties later.”

Soyebi also told newsmen that the remaining election results in four council areas would be announced only after the election had been concluded and all the results computed.
This development is a grim replay of June 12, 1993 presidential election debacle when release of election results was suspended midway as the late Basorun MKO Abiola was coasting home to victory.

And there is palpable fear that the postponement of the announcement of outstanding results and voting, would afford the ruling party the opportunity to manipulate the electoral process and declare a doctored result, which would see its candidate emerge as winner.
As at press time, there was war of words between the two major camps, each claiming to have won the re-run election.

Indeed, the political tension in the state fondly called “Fountain of Knowledge” peaked on Sunday as Nigerians, anxiously waiting to know the legal governor of the state, were told to wait for another two weeks before they could be given that luxury.
The confusion over the results climaxed on Sunday during a meeting at the collation centre in Ado Ekiti which had in attendance representatives of the parties and INEC. Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Mrs Ayoka Adebayo, was conspicuously absent. Lagos lawyer, Femi Falana, who represented AC got up to ask for the REC who by virtue of the Electoral Act was the returning officer and the reply he got was that she was “indisposed” hence Mr. Soyebi, a Federal Electoral Commissioner (FEC) had to stand in for her.

Falana drew attention to the Electoral Act which vests the power to announce results of gubernatorial election on the REC, arguing that it would be unconstitutional for the FEC from Abuja to do so.
With this development, the atmosphere became rowdy, and the INEC commissioner after argument back and forth and consultation among the electoral body’s officials announced indefinite suspension of the results.

However, the delay in the announcement of result seems to be taking its toll on the patience of youths of the state who, agitated by the delay, took to the streets making bonfires of disused tyres in protest and warning that fake results should not be announced.
Some of the youths who also converged on Christ’s Girls school were heard chanting anti-Oni slogans and warning of the consequence of announcing fake results.
The [b]rising tension in the state has also caused the Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro to visit the state on Sunday afternoon. Unconfirmed report said the IGP might have actually taken over security in the state from the Deputy Inspector General of Police, John Ahmedu.
Meanwhile, the Action Congress (AC) in Ekiti State has accused Vice President Goodluck Jonathan of mounting pressure on, Mrs. Adebayo, to declare the disputed results from Ido-Osi local government in the re-run governorship polls in the state.

Apparently, if the Ido-Osi results are accepted and announced by the INEC, the PDP candidate, Engr. Segun Oni will have an edge over his AC counterpart, Dr. Kayode Fayemi.
The state chairman of AC, Chief Jide Awe said at a press conference in Ado-Ekiti on Sunday that “information at our disposal is to the effect that Vice President Jonathan Goodluck is mounting pressure on the Ekiti Resident Election Commissioner to announce results not collated at Ido-Osi local government. If the results not collated are announced, the story will not be palatable. We now appeal to INEC that only collated results from Ido-Osi should be announced.”

According to the AC chairman, “hoodlums, aided by the Bomb Disposal Unit (BDU) of the Nigeria Police stormed the INEC collation centre at Ido-Osi on Saturday and shot sporadically into the air to disperse those at the collation centre. They emerged with two Ghana-Must-Go bags containing already thumb-printed ballot papers.

“Only results from three wards were collated before their arrival. Three policemen on duty were seriously wounded by those from the BDU. We were told that one of the policemen wounded at the collation center had one of his legs amputated.”
Awe said that the AC leaders were currently appealing to people to be calm, but may no longer be able to persuade them not to fight if the disputed results from Ido-Osi were accepted and announced by INEC.

He expressed surprise that despite assurances by INEC and the police that the postponed election in two wards in Oye would hold on Sunday, INEC had once again announced that the election had been postponed.

The AC boss wondered how long it would take INEC to collate results in 63 wards scattered over 10 local government areas.
“AC will no longer tolerate delay in the announcement of the results,” he warned, noting that the re-run election was peaceful in some areas, but characterized by serious violence, killings, maiming in some other areas.
“Scores of PDP thugs were arrested. Another Ipole-Iloro PDP chieftain was arrested with two shotguns. Two vehicles belonging to AC were burnt at Ido-Osi. Senator Lawrence Agunbiade, an AC chieftain was attacked and wounded. He’s in one of the hospitals in the state. It is an extension of the do-or-die politics of PDP.”

Awe, however, declared that “the AC candidate, Dr. Kayode Fayemi performed brilliantly,” adding that if contrary result was announced, it would not be taken kindly.
“Whatever the resolution of the people in high places, the people of Ekiti chose Dr. John Olukayode Fayemi and we thank the people of Ekiti.”

Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) had earlier in the day called for the cancellation of the election results at Egbe/Iro and Igbemo wards, alleging that the poll was beset with malpractice.
The party alleged that a former governor of the state invaded Igbemo with some thugs, who drove away the electorate and stuffed the ballot boxes.

Addressing newsmen at the party secretariat on Ajilosun Road, Ado -Ekiti on Sunday, the party’s Public Relations Officer, Lekan Adekanbi said there was no voting at Egbe/Iro.
He said the people of the ward complained that they were barred from participating in the re-run election to determine who would govern the state for another four years.

Calling for the cancellation of Igbemo ward result, in Irepodun/Ifelodun local government, Adekanbi said: “We are appealing to INEC to cancel the election results in Igbemo ward because a former governor of the state invaded the place with a retinue of thugs and chased away the people who wanted to cast their votes, and his thugs did the thumb-printing of the ballot papers.”
Meanwhile, a coalition of observer teams, which monitored the election, criticized the exercise, saying it was yet to advance democracy in Nigeria.

In an interim report signed on behalf of 12 organizations by Mashood Erubami (Transition Monitoring Group); Umar Faruk (Transparency Movement); Reuben James Esq. (Nigeria Bar Association) and Olasupo Ojo (Committee for Defence of Human Rights), the groups noted that in Ido-Osi local government election, people were intimidated and attacked, injured and turned away. According to them, such development tells a bad story about the integrity and authenticity of whatever results may come out of the election.

They pointed out that while the mobile police patrolled the streets and provided security, unprepared regular police personnel manned the polling units, which undermined the security of presiding officers. “There was lopsided presence of security personnel. Some party agents were intimidating and bloodthirsty,” the group said.

They said while the electorate were ready to imbibe the tenets of democracy and institutionalize it, a section of the political class was insisting on snatching the sovereign rights of the people.
Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Opeyemi Bamidele told newsmen at the collation centre that what the AC wanted was free and fair election. He noted that neither the AC nor Kayode Fayemi was desperate to rule Ekiti and pointed out that “whatever INEC does today is being seen by the whole world.”

Fayemi in his reaction to the whole quagmire, said that he was the governor in waiting, adding that with the results declared so far by INEC on Saturday, Ekiti people have elected him as governor and he was waiting to be sworn in as the governor of Ekiti state.
He denied that the PDP was leading his party after the re-run, insisting that INEC should declare him the winner of the election.

Fayemi added that INEC has to explain to the world why the re-run election in Oye has to be postponed despite the heavy security that was in that town on Sunday.
But the chairman of the PDP national committee for the Ekiti re-run, Ebenezer Babatope insisted that after the collation of all the results, Segun Oni was leading with over 5,000 votes.

Results so far released by INEC as at Saturday night L/G AC  PDP
Ise Orun 4221  3864
Gbonyin  2871  1925
Ekiti S/W  351 423
Irepodun/Ifelodun 5702 4087
Ijero  1881  5121
TOTAL  15,026  15,420 
•AC leading with over 11,000 outstanding votes in its favour as part of the validly cast votes in the 2007 elections
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http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2009/apr/27/national-27-04-2009-01.htm