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•APC, PDP, LP tie in states won
From Romanus Ugwu, Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja and Chinelo Obogo
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has secured a comfortable lead as it has topped the table with 8.76 million votes, winning 12 states, PDP in second place with 7.16 million votes, with 12 states, while Labour Party got 5.83 million votes, with 12 states won.
PDP won in states like Osun, Yobe, Gombe, Adamawa, President Muhammadu Buhari’s states, Katsina, Akwa-Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Kaduna, Kebbi, and Sokoto.
It scored 354,366 to win Osun, 198,567 in Yobe, 319,123 votes in Gombe, 417611 votes in Adamawa, 489,045 votes in Katsina, 214,012 in Akwa-Ibom, 426,607 in Bauchi, 68,818 in Bayelsa, 554,360 in Kaduna, 285,175 in Kebbi, and 288,679 votes in Sokoto states.
The APC cleared Ekiti, Ondo, Ogun, Oyo, Kwara, Jigawa, Niger, Benue, Kogi, Zamfara, scoring 201,494 votes, 369,924 votes, 341,554 votes, 449,884 votes, 263,572 votes, 421,390 votes, 375,183 votes, 310,468 votes, 240,751 votes, 298,396 votes, respectively.
LP with 4.04 votes has won in Lagos, Enugu, Nasarawa, Edo, Abia, Plateau and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), scoring 582,454 votes 428,640 votes, 191,361 votes, 331,163 votes, 327,095 votes, 466,272 votes, and 281,717 votes respectively while the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) won Kano States, harvesting 997,279 out of the total accredited voters numbering 1,769,525.
As at press time, the announcement of result from states like Imo, Rivers, Cross-River, Anambra, Borno, Ebonyi, and Delta were being awaited.
But Daily Sun gathered that Tinubu won in Rivers State by polling 231,591 votes from 13 local government areas.
He defeated Obi, who garnered 175,071 votes from five local government areas and Atiku with polled 88,468 votes.
Curiously, in all the state results announced, the issue of over-voting, violence, ballot box snatching and malfunctioning Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) among others accounted for the greater number of canceled votes.
The announcement, delayed for hours finally resumed around 3.30pm after suffering several postponement over what the commission tagged delay in arrival of the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) and the State Collation Officers.
Meanwhile, APC and Tinubu, have instituted a suit to restrain the Labour Party (LP) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from doing anything to stop the collation and announcement of the results of the February 25 presidential election.
In the suit filed before the Federal High Court in Kano and marked FHC/KN/CS/43/2023, the Action Alliance and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were joined as defendants while the Vice Presidential of the APC, Kashim Shettima, was also listed as plaintiff.
The plaintiffs in a motion on notice filed alongside the originating summons, asked the court to make the order restraining the defendants from stopping the collation and announcement of the results because “damages will not adequately compensate for the injury that may be occasioned on the Plaintiffs if by the Defendants stop the collation of the result.”
While the country awaited the final announcement, the APC Presidential Campaign Office has come alive with celebration.
Our correspondent who visited the campaign office confirm that dancing and singing from the blaring music serenaded the area, just as vehicular and human traffic into the office increased tremendously.
Meanwhile, the Atiku/Okowa Campaign Organisation has said INEC cannot continue with the collation in the absence of political parties.
Spokesman of the campaign, Daniel Bwala, in a statement, on Tuesday, said the conduct of the election has attracted criticism across board, over alleged non compliance with the electoral Act.
PDP collation agents and those of three other political parties, had walked out of the National Collation Centre on Monday, over alleged non compliance with the Electoral Act by INEC in the collation process.
Bwala said the development has lead to a “constitutional logjam” noting that
“what is clear and undisputed to all at this stage is that INEC is refusing to address the observed problems and objections that have been widely expressed.”
“Let’s be clear, the election is inconclusive and the INEC chairmam cannot proceed without the political parties being present to object or accept the results at the national collation exercise. No court of law hears and determines a matter in the absence of necessary parties. Therefore the options available to the INEC chairman in law , fairness, transparency, equity and good conscience are thus:
“Suspend national collation immediately and address the complaints raised by parties relating to BVAS bypass and electronic transmission of results. Set a date for conduct of elections in the affected places and ensure results are uploaded as contains in the guidelines. The said elections must be free and fair and BVAS used accordingly .”
“Cancel all the collated and announced results so far until such a time when all the results collated at the polling units alone be uploaded to INEC server.
“Declare this election inconclusive and set a date for conduct of elections that addresses areas where BVAS was not used and where violence occurred which suppress the voting rights of the people.
“Address the Nigerian public in a televised speech on the sanctity of the processes and integrity of his person to regain the confidence of the Nigerian people and the international community.”
