From Joseph Amedu, Lokoja
From Kogi State to Bayelsa State, stakeholders and political parties are challenging the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to manually collate election results in the November 11, 2023 governorship polls in Bayelsa state.
In Kogi State the Director General of Renewed Vision for New Direction Campaign for Ododo, governorship candidate of the APC, Chief Abiodun Akerejola in a statement made available to our Correspondent in Lokoja on Friday, called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to urgently give further explanation.
In Bayelsa State, a socio-political group, Good Governance Advocacy Group (GGAG), on Friday expressed concern over remarks credited to the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in Bayelsa State, Obo Effanga, that the results of the November 11 governorship election in the State would be collated manually.
Effanga was reported to have made the disclosure during an interactive meeting with religious leaders and faith-based organisations in Yenagoa on Wednesday.
“But just to clear all doubts, the election is going to be won and lost at the polling unit,” he said.
The GGAG while reacting to the REC’s remarks in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Godwin Ebiware, said it was surprising that Effanga did not give reasons why the Commission would collate results manually.
Ebiware said, “The Federal Government spent billions of naira to secure the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) but out of a hidden agenda by the political parties in Bayelsa in connivance with the Independent National Electoral Commission, has decided to abandon the electronic transmission of the November 11 election results in real-time.
“It will be recalled that the opposition parties at the federal level are still in court over the inability of the INEC to transmit results of the February 23 presidential election results in real-time.”
The group also called on the Police Command in the state to exercise neutrality ahead of the forthcoming governorship polls in the State.
