A group of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) elders and supporters in Edo State gathered at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Benin City on Wednesday, protesting what they claim is the denial of their candidate, Dr. Asue Ighodalo’s rightful victory in the recent governorship election.
The demonstrators, bearing placards with inscriptions like “Dr. Asue Ighodalo, the governor-elect that we know” and “Edo PDP won the election but INEC and police colluded to change it,” expressed their dissatisfaction with the official results declared by INEC. The protesters, drawn from various local government areas, accused INEC of tampering with the election outcome.
Chanting solidarity songs in Yoruba, the crowd demanded immediate action to address what they described as “electoral injustice,” calling for INEC to restore what they see as the rightful mandate of Ighodalo.
On September 22, INEC announced the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Senator Monday Okpebholo, as the winner of the governorship election, defeating his main rivals—Asue Ighodalo of the PDP and Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party.
However, the PDP has rejected the result, alleging that INEC violated the Electoral Act. The party insists that Ighodalo was the true winner of the election. According to PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State, who chaired the Edo PDP National Campaign Council, presented results from polling units showing Ighodalo in a clear lead.
In a statement, the PDP reiterated its confidence in the election outcome as reported by its polling agents, accusing the APC of desperation. The statement read, “The Peoples Democratic Party stands by the results of the Edo State Governorship election as garnered by its polling agents across the state and echoed by Governor Ahmadu Fintiri. These results indicate that the PDP candidate, Dr. Asue Ighodalo, clearly won the election.”
The party further accused the APC of manipulating the state collation process, alleging that the APC, in collusion with “unscrupulous” INEC and security officials, altered genuine results to favour Okpebholo. The PDP said, “The rush and venom with which the APC attacked Governor Fintiri only confirm their desperation to cover up their manipulations and steal the mandate freely given to Dr. Ighodalo by the people of Edo State.”
The PDP has vowed to pursue justice through every legal avenue, demanding that INEC and other institutions involved be held accountable for any electoral malpractices.
