On Monday, November 25, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) responded to recent allegations made by governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) regarding electoral manipulation in the 2024 Edo State governorship election.
During a two-day meeting in Jos, Plateau State, the PDP governors claimed that electoral irregularities had prevented their candidate, Asue Ighodalo, from winning the Edo election. They also accused INEC of rigging the recent Ondo election to benefit the All Progressives Congress (APC). The governors alleged that INEC altered the results and called on the judiciary and lawmakers to strengthen electoral laws to prevent what they described as “institutional sabotage” of the people’s will.
In a swift response, Rotimi Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, called the accusations “unfortunate and inappropriate.” He emphasized that INEC, as a law-abiding body, could not comment on ongoing court cases. Oyekanmi also criticized the PDP governors for conducting a “media trial” and urged them to present any evidence they had in court, where the matter should be properly addressed.
“The PDP has filed a petition at the tribunal to contest the Edo State governorship election results, and that is where they should provide their evidence,” Oyekanmi said.
On the allegations regarding the Ondo State election, Oyekanmi defended INEC, describing the election as one of the best the Commission had conducted. He urged political parties to show sportsmanship, saying, “It is not healthy to accept the outcome of an election only when you win.”
In the Edo State election, INEC had declared Monday Okpebholo of the APC the winner, with 291,667 votes. PDP candidate Asue Ighodalo received 247,274 votes, while Labour Party’s Olumide Akpata came third with 22,761 votes. In Ondo, INEC declared Lucky Aiyedatiwa of the APC the winner of the governorship election on November 14, defeating PDP’s Agboola Ajayi and Labour Party’s Olorunfemi Festus.
