• Friday, March 29, 2024
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‘Rerun election will be opportunity to widen PDP’s victory’

‘Rerun election will be opportunity to widen PDP’s victory’

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state says the rerun election being order by the Appeal Court will be an “opportunity to widen the margin of victory for PDP.”

According to Ini Ememobong, publicity secretary of the party, the judgment acknowledges the widespread irregularities that occurred in Essien Udim Local Government Area, which were noted and highlighted in different reports from observers.

“We welcome the judgment of the court and hereby indicate our preparedness for elections, as this will provide an opportunity for us to widen the margin of victory against Akpabio and the All Progressives Party (APC).

“We are expectant that Akpabio will very soon tender his resignation from his ministerial office to meet us in the campaign field, as the law demands.

“Our party urges the public to ignore the false stories being peddled by members of the opposition APC about the judgment- which specifically ordered a rerun in Essien Udim Local Government Area alone.

“It is on record that the margin of victory currently outstanding is in tens of thousands of votes, which has not been affected by the judgment of the court.”

Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Akwa Ibom State said it has been vindicated by the Appeal court ruling over the outcome of the Akwa Ibom North West senatorial district elections.

It says it had earlier decried the “widespread violence and irregularities during elections in Essien Udim LGA, which it said had affected the outcome of the elections in area.”

Read also: PDP chances brighten as INEC holds guber, Kogi West Senatorial polls same day

The court re-affirmed as valid and preserved the elections as declared by the commission in 9 out of the 10 council areas that make up Akwa Ibom North West (Ikot Ekpene) Senatorial District.

It, however, ordered a rerun of the senatorial election within 90 days in Essien Udim council area only, where the commission had decried the “massive rigging and manipulations that culminated in the  award of 61,329 votes to  Godswill Akpabio alone in the area, intended to upturn the results of the other 9 local government areas.”

According to INEC, the accreditation figure from the Smart Card Readers (SCRs), confirmed by ticks on the voter register for the entire Essien Udim stood at just 19,455.

In a statement made available to the media and signed by Don Etukudoh, its public affairs officer, it stated that  the commission had rejected  “this travesty and maintained its position despite pressure, blackmail and threats to lives of lNEC officials.”

It pointed out that the affirmation of  the commission’s position as exemplified by the Appeal Court ruling is victory for the electoral process and is heartily welcomed by the commission.