Category: 2023 Elections

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2023 Elections

Kogi Primary: It’s Collective Victory, Says Melaye

Dino Melaye, the Kogi State Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate for November 11 governorship poll, has reacted following his victory.

He commended the leadership of the party, his co-contestants and party members for their conduct in the primary election which was held on Sunday in Lokoja, the State capital.

Melaye, a former lawmaker who represented Kogi West Senatorial District at the National Assembly polled a total of 313 votes in the indirect primary election to beat 8 other aspirants to clinch the ticket.

In a statement made available to newsmen in the early hours of Monday, Melaye said, “I thank the leaders of our party at the National, State, Local and ward levels, my dear brothers who advanced the cause of democracy in this contest and our numerous supporters who ensured that peace reigned, decorum prevailed, and conflicts were contained all through the process.

“As I savour this moment in humility, I return again to the scriptures. I recall the task and support that God gave to Moses to lead the people of Israel out of bandage to freedom. By the grace of God, our state will be liberated from the yoke of Yahaya Bello and APC. I also found a correlation between the new responsibility that God is placing on me and the responsibility that he gave to Gideon, who though felt unworthy, was qualified by God to deliver his people from the Gibeonites who had plundered their land and eaten their harvest.

“This shall be our experience in Kogi state. Furthermore, I think of Jephthah, who was despised and was called unserious. God has just proved that he takes my matter very seriously.

“The outcome of today’s (Sunday’s) election is not traceable to the strength of anyone in our state. It is a collective victory; the manifestation of a new spirit and purposeful coalition of all peoples across our beloved state. I acknowledge especially the enormous energy and commitment deployed to this endeavour by my sister, Natasha Akpoti- Uduaghan, and her beloved husband. Your day of celebration is very near, by the grace of God.

“I recognise that contests of this nature are hardly devoid of offences. I ask for forgiveness for all personal and corporate infractions in all my political navigations.”

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2023 Elections

INEC To Spend Over N3 Billion For Election Litigations

Nigeria’s electoral body, the Independent National Electoral Commission has allocated over N3 billion to fight litigation arising from the 2023 general election.
The electoral body budgeted over N3 billion to defend itself from the results of the February 25 presidential and national assembly election and the March 18 governorship and state assembly polls.
It was gathered that INEC in its Election Project Plan for the 2023 general election earmarked N3 billion for the prosecution of election-related cases.
The election projection plan which was sighted by The Punch on Sunday partly reads, “Litigation and prosecution: N2,104,965,000 (2022) and N3,087,195,425 (2023). Total, N5,192,160,425.’’
The document further reveals that INEC budgeted N886.2 million for legal drafting and clearance in 2022 and 2023, while N337.4 million was earmarked for legal drafting and clearance in 2022 and N548.7 million was budgeted for the same legal drafting and clearance in 2023.
However, the commission is yet to disclose the number of lawyers it wants to engage for the numerous election petition cases lodged at the tribunals.
The Chief Press Secretary to the INEC chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi also told The Punch on Sunday that he did not know the number of solicitors that would be employed by the commission.
Meanwhile, it was learnt that over 100 election petitions have been filed by aggrieved candidates both from the presidential and state election petition tribunals to challenge the outcome of the polls.
Also, it was gathered that those election petition tribunals in over 12 states including Edo, Plateau, Ondo, Kwara, Ogun, Bayelsa, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Bauchi, Lagos and Niger states received petitions from National Assembly candidates who are contesting their results.
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2023 Elections

2023: Full List Of All 26 Governors-elect Announced So Far By INEC

A total of 26 candidates have been announced as Governors-elect by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as it concludes the 2023 elections.
INEC had on Wednesday declared Alex Otti of the Labour Party (LP) as winner of the election in Abia State.
Peter Mbah of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, also emerged the winner of the governorship election in Enugu State.
This indicates that 26 out of 28 governorship elections have been announced. The elections in Kebbi and Adamawa were declared inconclusive.
Two PDP Governors – Seyi Makinde (Oyo) and Bala Mohammed (Bauchi) – secured re-election.
Seven first-term governors were elected on the platform of the PDP. They are: Kefas Agbu (Taraba), Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau), Peter Mbah (Enugu), Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), Siminialayi Fubara (Rivers) and Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta).
PDP’s Dauda Lawal unseated Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, while Abba Kabir of the NNPP unseated the APC in Kano State.
The All Progressives Congress, APC won in 15 states, PDP in nine, LP in one. The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) won in Kano state.
APC had seven Governors re-elected. They are: Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe), Mai Mala Muni (Yobe), Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos), Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), Babagana Zulum (Borno).
The ruling party also secured wins for eight new candidates: Uba Sani (Kaduna), Bassey Out (Cross River), Mohammed Bago (Niger), Umar Namadi (Jigawa), Ahmed Aliyu (Sokoto), Dikko Radda (Katsina), Hyacinth Alia (Benue), and Francis Nwifuru (Ebonyi).
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2023 Elections

INEC Declares Sanwo-Olu Winner Of Lagos Governorship Election

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has been declared as the winner of the governorship election in Lagos State by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress, APC, polled a total of 762,134 to defeat first runner-up, Labour Party’s Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour.

The LP candidate secured 312,329 votes, while Abdulazeez Adeniran of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, got 62,449 votes.

The results were announced by the Returning Officer, Prof Adenike Temifayo-Oladiji, Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Technology Akure, FUTA.

The number of valid votes were 1,155,678; rejected votes – 17,953; total votes cast – 1,173,631; accredited votes – 1,182,620.

Before the declaration, Rhodes-Vivour called the election a sham, alleging “collusion between the ruling party and electoral officials”.

The flagbearer said what the people witnessed was “a slap on the face of democracy” and everyone who came out to vote for the LP on Saturday.

“In the light of this, I am convinced beyond any doubt that the results being released by INEC do not represent the wishes of the majority of peaceful Lagosians.

“More so the results from our field agents and situation room indicated that we won this election,” Rhodes-Vivour added.

LP Chairman in Lagos, Mrs. Dayo Ekong had asked INEC to cancel the poll, citing electoral malpractices, intimidation, violence, among others.

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2023 Elections

BREAKING: Seyi Makinde Wins Oyo Guber Election

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde has emerged winner of the governorship election in the state for another term.

The election was conducted in all the 33 local government areas of the state on Saturday.

Makinde who contested on the platform of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been declared the winner of the election.

The returning officer in the state, Professor Adebayo Bamire who announced the result of the election, declared that Makinde who is seeking another term in office defeated all other candidates to win the election.

Bamire, the Vice Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, announced that Makinde scored a total of 563,756 votes to defeat all other candidates.

Bamire while speaking announced that the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Senator Teslim Folarin scored 256,685 votes.

The Accord candidate, Adebayo Adelabu scored a total of 38,357 votes.

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2023 Elections

Lagos election: We don’t have police in Nigeria – Mr P, Falz cry out

Nigerian celebrities, the Peter of P-Square, popularly known as Mr. P and Falz, have slammed the Nigeria Police over their conduct in the ongoing governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections.

The 2023 Lagos State gubernatorial election was marred by a high level of violence and intimidation.

Some of the attacks on voters and electoral materials were reportedly carried out right in front of the security personnel.

Video clips of police officers being compromised are flying around on social media. The police had even described as a mere joke, the threat issued to non indigenes of Lagos by the State’s Parks Management Committee Chairman, Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly known as MC Oluomo.

Oluomo had in a trending video, threatened Igbos residing in Lagos State to either come out and vote for the All Progressives Congress, APC in the ongoing governorship elections or remain indoors.

Reacting, Falz tweeted: “I am so livid.

“This level of fuckery is unbelievable!

“A couple of Arise TV journalists were very badly beaten up at my polling unit.

“OF COURSE, in the presence of Police officers!”

“Mr P said, “We do not have police in Nigeria! All we have is thugs with uniforms! SHAME ON THEM!” more on 626Blaze…

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2023 Elections

Lagos: Desmond Elliot wins in Surulere Constituency

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Desmond Elliot as the winner of the Surulere Constituency election.

INEC Returning Officer, Dr. O.J Fenuga made the announcement on Sunday.

He said Desmond Elliott of the All Progressives Congress, APC, polled 17,837 votes to defeat his closest rival Adebayo Bode of the Labour Party, LP, who polled 7,822 votes.

Fenuga said the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Thompson Sulaimon Abolaji, polled 1,045 votes.

Earlier, Festus Keyamo, the spokesperson of the Tinubu/Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, had congratulated Desmond Elliot for winning the election, More on Onpointy…

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2023 Elections

2023 Elections The Most Transparent And Credible In Nigeria – Lai Mohammed

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, stated that the 2023 general elections are the most transparent and credible in the country’s history

The minister said this on Saturday, March 18 in his home town, Oro, near Ilorin Kwara while speaking with newsmen after casting his vote in the Governorship and State Assemblies elections.

Mohammed said the introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, helped tackle the issues of multiple accreditations, voting and rigging.

“With what I have observed both in the February 25 and today’s elections, there has been a remarkable improvement in the performance of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)

This is to me probably one of the most transparent and credible elections in Nigeria. That is why I get worried about the red-erring by some people I can call sad losers in the aftermath of the presidential and National Assembly elections.

“I am glad to say that some of the aggrieved parties have gone to court. That is the best thing in any election in the world. Let the court interpret what the law says.”

“Without any doubt, the introduction of BVAS has been a game changer in the sense that with BVAS, you are able to get the actual number of people who are accredited.

“Also with BVAS, it is now not possible for you to vote twice because your biometric and facial are captured.

“That explained why though INEC said there were 84 million voters in Nigeria, the last election showed that only about 24 million people cast their votes,’’ he said.

He said most of the issues being raised about the credibility of INEC in conducting the polls were to distract people.

“What we noticed is that some media houses had taken position for one candidate and this makes rubbish of most of the analysis we see on their platforms,’’ he said.

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2023 Elections

Governorship Election: Funke Akindele Loses Her Polling Unit To APC’s Babajide Sanwo-Olu

Funke Akindele, the Deputy Governorship Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lost her polling unit 019, Ita Aro square, Àga/Ijimu ward in Ikorodu, Lagos State to the incumbent governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

According to the results collated from the polling unit, PDP secured a total of 19 votes while APC scored 77 votes. Labour Party polled 3 votes.

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2023 Elections

Gov Election 2023: Sanwo-Olu Wins Polling Unit

The governor of Lagos state and candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, defeated Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour and Abdulazeez Adediran of Labour Party and the Peoples Democratic Party, at Polling Unit 6, Eiyekole, Lagos Island, in the ongoing governorship and State House of Assembly elections.

Sanwo-Olu polled 121 votes while Adediran and Rhodes-Vivour secured only one and two votes respectively.

The Independent National Electoral Commission officials as well as the security agencies arrived as early as 7:30 in the morning and voting started at exactly 9 am.

Addressing journalists shortly after casting his votes, Sanwo-Olu sued for peaceful conduct of the election while expressing satisfaction over the turnout of voters.

He said: “We are happy with the turnout of voters in this election. I was told INEC officials came right on time, and voting is on.

“I think it’s time for us to see and understand that this process is not meant to be one of violence. The election that leads to a democratic process is the best form of validating what true democracy is all about.

“I want to reiterate that this contest is about peace, progress, and prosperity. Everyone has the right to be able to advocate for everyone to freely express themselves, fairly, and transparently.”