The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has suspended the Electoral Officer for Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State, Fred Ogboji, over the alleged missing of ballot papers in the rerun elections for the Plateau North Senatorial District and Jos North/Bassa Federal constituency seats. The rerun elections were marred by voter apathy and a shortage of ballot papers, leading to some INEC officials being held hostage by angry voters. As a result, the election was postponed in certain polling units. INEC has directed Ogboji to hand over his responsibilities to the next senior officers for further investigation.
In a separate incident, a 40-year-old man named Mansur Shafiu was killed by suspected political thugs during a by-election in Rigachikun, Igabi Local Government of Kaduna State. Shafiu was stabbed when he tried to prevent the thugs from snatching a ballot box. The incident sparked protests, and the military intervened to restore normalcy.
Results from the by-elections and rerun elections have started to come in. In Kaduna State, Hussaini Jallo of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) was declared the winner of the Igabi Federal Constituency by-election. In Ondo State, Ife Ehindero of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the Akoko North-East/Akoko North-West Federal Constituency. In Anambra State, Peter Uzokwe of the Young Progressives Party emerged as the winner of the rerun election for Nnewi North, Nnewi South, and Ekwusigo Federal Constituency. Other winners include Dahiru Ahmed of the APC in Tambuwal West state constituency (Sokoto State), Shehu Tafoki of the APC in Faskari/Kankara constituency (Katsina State), and candidates from the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) who won two state Assembly seats in Kano State.
These incidents of violence and electoral malpractice highlight the challenges faced by INEC in conducting free and fair elections in Nigeria.
In Delta State, the House of Assembly candidate of the APC, Alapala Ebitonmo, was declared the winner of the rerun election for the Burutu State Constituency 1. He received 7,728 votes, defeating the PDP candidate, Asupa Forteta, who scored 6,616 votes.
In Bayelsa State, the APGA candidate, Mr. Waikumo Amakoromo, was declared the winner of the Yenagoa Constituency 2 run-off election. Amakoromo garnered 5,959 votes, defeating his main opponent, Mrs. Ebiuwou Koku-Obiyai of the PDP, who received 5,263 votes.
In Benue State, the candidate of the APC, Terwase Uche, emerged as the winner of the by-election. Uche secured 5,289 votes, defeating the PDP candidate, Jimmy Geoffrey, who received 4,134 votes.
In Adamawa State, the PDP candidate, Musa Mahmud, was declared the winner of the by-election for the Mayo-Belwa state constituency. Mahmud received 1,306 votes, while his closest rival, Ibrahim Italiya, of the APC, garnered 874 votes.
In Akwa Ibom State, the candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), Emmanuel Ukpong-Udo, won the Ikono/Ini Federal Constituency re-run election. Ukpong-Udo secured 24,050 votes, defeating the PDP candidate, Dr. Glory Edet, who received 17,232 votes. Moses Easien, also a candidate of the YPP, emerged as the winner of the Ibiono Ibom State constituency rerun poll.
However, the Jalingo, Yorro, and Zing House of Representatives by-election in Taraba State was declared inconclusive by INEC. The PDP candidate, Alhaji Tafida Sadiq, obtained 17,214 votes, while the candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Mr. Innocent Jabayang, received 15,537 votes. The difference between the two candidates was 1,677 votes. As per the Electoral Act, if the margin of victory is less than the total number of collected Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in the areas where the election was canceled, the result cannot be declared. In this case, the margin of victory was less than the total number of collected PVCs in the affected areas, so a rerun will be held between the candidate with the highest votes and the first runner-up.
