Following the declaration of Senator Monday Okpebholo as the Governor-Elect in Edo State by the Independent National Electoral Commission three weeks ago, a pro-democracy group is encouraging the Peoples Democratic Party and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, to acknowledge the results of the governorship election. The Executive Director of the Initiative for Democratic Advancement and Free Speech, Patrick Osaigbovo, made this appeal in a statement released in Abuja.
Recently, supporters of Ighodalo protested at the INEC office in Benin City, claiming that their candidate was the rightful winner of the election. They expressed discontent with the outcome of the September 21 elections. Senator Okpebholo emerged as the winner with 291,667 votes, while Ighodalo secured 247,274 votes, placing second.
Osaigbovo criticized the PDP for its actions post-election, accusing the party of attacking state institutions such as INEC and security agencies. He emphasized that the PDP’s behavior before and after the election contributed to its loss of public support.
In response to the pro-democracy group’s plea, the Deputy Director-General of Media in the PDP Campaign Council, Olu Martins, refuted the claims and denied allegations of the party influencing election observers. Martins stressed the need to enhance the electoral system and highlighted that many observers found the election processes to be transparent and fair at the polling units.