Nigeria Times

The All Progressive Congress (APC), governorship candidate, Yahaya Bello has been declared the winner of the governorship election held in Kogi State on Saturday by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

The INEC’s Returning Officer for the election who is also the Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Professor Ibrahim Garuba, said Bello had been declared winner, having scored the highest number of votes during the poll conducted on Saturday.

Bello polled a massive 406,222 votes to defeat his contestant, Musa Wada of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, who scored 189,704 votes to emerge second.

Umar said the total number of cancelled votes were 149,576 and that the margin of lead was 216,518.

Also, Mrs. Natasha Akpoti of the Social Democratic Party SDP came third in the exercise with 9,482 votes.

However with the result, Bello has been re-elected for a second term in office in Kofi state.

INEC had on Sunday evening suspended further collation of results till today. 19 Local Governments had been collated yesterday while results for Ibaji and Lokoja were being awaited.

When collation resumed on Monday morning at about 9.30am, the Returning Officer for Dekina made clarifications on why votes were cancelled in certain poling units in the Local Government.

After the clarifications, Garbadeen Olugbenga, the Returning Officer for Ibaji gave the result of the LG. According to him, the APC won in the Local Government, having polled 12,682 votes while the PDP polled 10,594 votes.

He said the total registered voters were 66,675 but that only 25,598 of them were accredited, as the total votes cast in the area were 25,258.

In Lokoja, the Returning Officer said there were 137,301 registered voters, but that only 34,897 voters were accredited. In Ibaji, APC scored 19,451 votes while PDP garnered 11,059 votes.

During the collation, INEC announced cancellation of votes in many Polling Units and many Local Governments across the state. Ballot box snatching, violence, over-voting and fighting were among reasons preferred for the cancellation. 25 political parties participated in the election.

Meanwhile the PDP and Wada at a media briefing on Sunday rejected the result, describing it as a ruse that would be challenged at the tribunal. The party alleged widespread violations of the Electoral Act. Also, the party, through its agent, Capt. Joe Agada refused to sign the final copy of the result as a protest against its outcome, Pm news reports.

A Political activist and former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, on Monday, congratulated the Governor-elect of Bayelsa state, David Lyon, describing his victory as deserving.

Frank in a statement in Abuja also urged National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus and the National Working Committee (NWC) led by him to apologise or resign over the loss of a state controlled by the party since 1999.

“This victory was not won by the APC but by the people of Bayelsa who have resisted imposition and oppression with their blood because of their implicit confidence in the capacity of Lyon to transform the state and change their story for the better,” he said.

He called on Lyon to be magnanimous in victory and to serve as a dependable rallying point for all Bayelsans irrespective of their political affiliations, ethnicity or creed. 

Frank said: “Your victory is not an APC’s mandate but that of the the collective will of the people of Bayelsa. Please when you assume office, strive to use it to unite the people of Bayelsa because the state can only attain true peace, development and greatness when united.

“Bayelsa has been divided for too long, but you have been chosen to heal their wounds and wipe their tears.
“Bayelsa has elected you Governor, it is now your turn to govern Bayelsa and cater for all Bayelsans.
“What you do from now will prove whether the confidence now reposed in you by the majority of Bayelsans was misplaced or you will justify their hopes and aspirations by carrying all stakeholders, including those who contested against you, along in your efforts to realise the Bayelsan dream and thus build a greater state we can all be proud to bequeath to upcoming generations.
“Your opponents during the election equally have lofty ideals and ideas for the advancement of the state. Therefore, embrace and work with them in the quest to realise the overall objective of governance which is the welfare and security of the people of the state.”
Frank prayed for the repose of the souls that were lost during the just concluded exercise and equally commiserated with the families of the victims. 
“These innocent Bayelsans whose lives have been brutally cut short died in the service of the state. They paid the supreme sacrifice to make Bayelsa great. Let these deaths, injuries and property destroyed not be in vain. 
“I urge you to immediately set up a truth and reconciliation committee to appraise all that transpired before, during and after the election, with a view to ensure holistic healing and reunification of the various interests in the state.”
Frank noted that the emergence of Lyon as Governor-Elect has vindicated his position that the PDP had chosen to relinquish the governance of Bayelsa to the opposition APC when it decided to field a weak candidate against a popular aspirant who could have steered the party to victory.
He called on the National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus and the National Working Committee (NWC) led by him, to immediately apologise to all leaders and members of the party in Bayelsa State in particular and the country in general, or resign their positions for deliberately trading the party’s political capital and dominance in the state for a pot of porridge.
“Secondus and the NWC knew what to do but they neglected to do it. This defeat is directly attributable to their poor choices, myopic political calculations and selfishness.
“It is our hope that the outcome of the Bayelsa State governorship election will serve as a lesson to the party to field popular candidates in future elections. The era of imposition is over. Take note,” he said.

The Nigerian Army and other security agencies deserve massive commendation for what it described as near-perfect election in Bayelsa State, according to the Centre for Democracy and Change (CDC).

At a press conference on Saturday in Yenegoa, the group of election observers stated that rather than vilify the Army and other security agencies as done by Governor Seriake Dickson, our gallant troops and other security agencies should be applauded for again rising to the occasion.

The outgoing governor had called for the cancellation of the election even before the exercise fully commenced, insinuating that the security agencies are conniving with the All Progressives Congress.

However, in response, the Centre for Democracy and Change accused Mr Dickson of plots to truncate the election meant to produce his successor.

In a statement by Executive Director, Gbenga Badamosi, the CDC disclosed that Mr Dickson and his likes would have had a field day if not for the brave soldiers on ground to support the police and other security agencies.

While calling him to order, CDC, however, apprised the governor that he will be held criminally liable for any breach of the peace in his state.

Read full statement:

The Centre for Democracy and Change (CDC) is alarmed at the plot by the outgoing Governor of Bayelsa state, Mr. Seriake Dickson to truncate the election that is meant to produce his successor.

Mr. Dickson has taken the unprecedented step of a governor calling for the cancellation of an election even before voting was properly underway. The instances and incidents he is latching onto to make this questionable call have been proven as being blown out of proportion, which raises the question of his motives for attempting to deny Bayelsans of their franchise when they have used the same instrumentality to keep him office for almost eight years.

Part of the justification for this treacherous call by Mr. Dickson is the lumping together of militias with the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force, something that has exposed the desperation on his part to have his party’s candidate win the election, possibly in order to install a lackey that will cover his tracks for whatever unacceptable acts he might have committed in his eight-year rule.

CDC elections observers are on ground in Bayelsa state and at no time did we witness the incidents that the Governor claimed to have occurred. Remarkably, neither local nor foreign observers have made any comment as to the conduct of the election along the line that Mr. Dickson did.

We are concerned that he made these indicting comments to provoke the army and other security agencies to abandon the electorates to his militias that have been paid to disrupt the vote. There have also been reports that the so-called army and police personnel are the militias that the governor procured fake uniforms for in order to use them for the agenda that he has now fully activated.

CDC is aware that the presence of legitimately deployed Army and other security personnel is the saving grace in Bayelsa at this electioneering moment as thugs loyal to politicians had made up their minds to destroy our democracy by sabotaging the governorship election.

We consequently call Mr. Seriake Dickson to order even as we warn that he shall be held criminally liable for any breach of the peace in Bayelsa state arising from his incitement of the populace against military and security personnel on election duty.

It does not matter whether his party or another political party wins the election because CDC will take this matter up when his immunity expires with his tenure as what he has done is capable of triggering a genocide.