Edo guber: PDP warns INEC against midnight final declaration of results

…As Obaseki said it will be do-or-die affair

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has warned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against the announcing the final result of next Saturday’s Edo State Governorship election at midnight.

Umar Damagun, acting national chairman of the party, handed down the warning at the grand finale of the governorship campaign rally on Saturday in Benin City.

Damagun also threatened that the party would defend its candidate’s votes against rigging by INEC to favour a particular political party with its blood.

“INEC, please, I enjoin you that we don’t want that midnight announcement of results. We will be vigilant, on top of the situation, and we will make sure that, that doesn’t happen.

“We are issuing this, though not a threat, but we are very serious and we will defend our votes with our blood and everything,” he threatened.

The Acting National Chairman, who also called on the security agencies to be neutral and give all political parties a level playing field, added that they would submit themselves for the security agencies to be killed and arrested if they worked in favour of any political party.

According to him, “I want to use this opportunity to tell our security agencies that you are being paid with taxpayers’ money. You have to accord the values for which you are created. Protect Nigerians, ensure justice and make sure that everyone is safe.

“A situation whereby you decide to take part in favour of any political party, let me make this very clear that you have to kill or arrest all of us if you have to take this state.

“We will be here and be with our party, and we are also ready to give our vote and blood for our right. I want to make this very clear, you may have the guns but we have God,” he said

While urging Nigerians to be concerned with the next week’s governorship election in the state, he opined that it would be a test for the nation’s democracy.

He noted that the party would resist INEC if it failed to conduct a credible, fair and free election, noting that any contrary would lead to anarchy.

On his part, Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki said the next Saturday’s governorship election would be a do-or-die affair.

Obaseki, who described the use of “federal might” in the election as an existential threat, vowed that they would all die if they did.

Earlier, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, chairman, National Campaign Council, Edo 2024 Governorship Election, also warned against any compromise of the electoral process.

Read also: Why INEC, security agencies’ task in Edo is tough

Fintiri also vowed that nobody can intimidate the party as well as rig the election against their candidate, Asue Ighodalo.

The Governor of Adamawa State, who described Edo as cradle of civilisation and intellectualism in the country, urged electorate to come out en-masse to vote for the party’s governorship candidate.

Also speaking, Atiku Abubakar, the former Vice President of Nigeria, who noted that Edo is not Lagos, urged the people to come out and vote for PDP candidate.

Atiku, while assuring that the Edo people’s votes would count, urged them to protect their votes from the polling units to the final collation centres and announcement.

Speaking shortly after he was presented with the flag of the party, Asue Ighodalo, the governorship candidate of the party, promised to build and consolidate on the achievements of Governor Obaseki if elected.

Ighodalo added that like the governors of the party, he would fight battles to win the governorship election.

“All our governors, that is the PDP governors, fight battles to win their elections. None of them get it easy to win their elections. That shows that the PDP is a party of courage. That is the same battle that Osarodion Ogie and I will fight to win the election,” he said.