Leaders and members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State staged a protest on Wednesday at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Benin, disputing the results of the September 21 governorship election. INEC had declared All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Senator Monday Okpebholo the winner, with 291,667 votes, defeating the PDP’s Asue Ighodalo, who garnered 247,274 votes.
The PDP has vehemently rejected the election results, alleging manipulation. During the protest, PDP members displayed banners with messages such as “INEC sack Edo REC” and “INEC give us our mandate.” Protesters chanted slogans like “Oshiomhole, Tinubu give us our mandate,” calling for accountability from top APC leaders.
Security personnel were deployed to ensure the protest remained orderly and to prevent demonstrators from approaching the INEC office in Aduwawa, Benin.
Responding to the protest, Edo APC Publicity Secretary Peter Uwadiae-Igbinigie dismissed the PDP’s claims, asserting that no amount of demonstration could alter the election outcome. “The PDP can protest as much as they want, but that cannot change the result of the election. They can only approach the tribunal with evidence if they believe their mandate has been taken from them,” he stated.
Uwadiae-Igbinigie emphasized that the people of Edo State had expressed their desire for a change in governance, asserting that the APC had received a clear mandate to govern starting November 12. He further urged the PDP to focus on legal recourse rather than protests.
The PDP’s protest was led by state chairman Tony Aziegbemi, alongside Mathew Iduoriyekewen, Director General of the Asue/Ogie Campaign Management Council, and Deputy Director General (Media and Publicity) Olu Martins. Aziegbemi called for INEC to declare Ighodalo the rightful winner, claiming that the results from certain local government areas had been manipulated.
Aziegbemi stated, “If we had lost this election in a free and fair contest, we would have congratulated them, but because they stole our mandate, we can’t congratulate them. We are going to reclaim the mandate taken away from us.”
The protest concluded with calls for judicial integrity, with both Aziegbemi and Iduoriyekewen expressing confidence that the tribunal would recognize the alleged discrepancies in the election results.
Uwadiae-Igbinigie reiterated that any challenges to the election results should be made through the tribunal, urging the PDP to provide compelling evidence if they wish to contest the outcome.
The political tension in Edo State continues as both parties prepare for potential legal battles over the recent election results.
