Adamawa State Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of bias towards the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate in the Edo State Governorship Election, Monday Okpebholo.
Governor Fintiri, who chairs the Edo PDP National Campaign Council, earlier alleged that the APC, in collaboration with some INEC officials and security personnel, hijacked the election process.
He alleged that the APC engaged in fabricating results to favour its candidate, Okpebholo.
“The results collated from the polling units have Asue Ighodalo in clear lead before the state collation exercise was hijacked by the APC,” he said earlier on Sunday.
Okpebholo was later declared winner of the election by INEC.
Following the declaration by Farouk Adamu, INEC returning officer that Okpebholo won the election, Fintiri expressed pain over the situation.
In a post on his official X account, Fintiri said, “I weep for Nigeria’s democracy after witnessing the shameful Edo Gubernatorial poll. The @OfficialAPCNg’s desperate attempts to discredit me by falsely claiming I announced results won’t distract from the real issue. I merely shared results from INEC’s Irev portal, as collated by INEC from the various Local Government Areas.
“What’s truly shameful is APC’s national chairman flying into Edo with a private jet on election day, defying movement restrictions, while their Governors used armoured escorts to intimidate voters.
“This blatant disregard for democratic norms is the real brigandage. Nigerians are outraged, slamming @inecnigeria for compromising and favouring APC. The reported vote-buying, disruption of collation processes, and suspicious results with more votes than accredited voters undermine trust in our democracy.
“Democracy indeed is under attack. We must condemn this rape of democracy and demand accountability. The world is watching, and Nigeria deserves better.”