The Independent National Electoral Commission has declared Saturday’s governorship election in Taraba and Imo states inconclusive as results were cancelled because of irregularities and violence in the affected areas.
According to INEC’s Deputy Director of Information, Nick Dazang, , “The elections in those states were inconclusive. And the elections would be held at a later date of not more than two weeks.”
He also said the commission usually cancels elections results in an area if the number of voters is more than the margin of the two leading contestants.
Earlier, INEC Returning Officer for the election in Taraba, Professor Muhammad Kariey, said there has to be a supplementary election because the total number of votes rejected and cancelled were more than the total votes with which the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, Darius Ishaku, led the runner-up, the All Progressives Congress’ Aisha Alhassan.
According to the returning officer, the difference between the PDP and the APC is 54,881, while the rejected votes from some troubled areas are over 100, 000 votes.
He said a supplementary election must be held within 30 days. PDP had scored a total of 317,198 votes to APC’s 262,386.
Reports say the elections in Donga, Wukari and Zing local governments were cancelled following alleged irregularities.
The Taraba governorship election is one of the most keenly contested, and perhaps the most watched by Nigerians because one of the leading candidates is a woman.
But after all votes in the election were collated, Ms. Al-Hasan trailed the PDP candidate by over 50,000 votes, but the electoral body declared the election inconclusive.
On Sunday, INEC declared a similar election in Imo inconclusive, saying the number of cancelled votes (144,715) in relation to the margin of win (79,529) by the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Rochas Okorocha, called for a supplementary election.
Mr. Okorocha was initially thought to have won the election after he garnered 385,671 votes compared to the 306,142 votes scored by the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, Emeka Ihedioha.
The APC candidate is ahead of Mr. Ihedioha by 79,529 votes, which is by far lower than the 144,715 votes cancelled by INEC as a result of irregularities in some wards.
INEC’s verdict on the Imo election is a repeat of what happened in the April 26, 2011 governorship election in the state.
The commission had at the time declared the poll inconclusive because election did not hold in Ohaji/Egbema, Mbatioli, Ngor-Okpala and Oguta Local Government Areas as well as in Orji Ward in Owerri North Local Government Area.
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