As INEC issues certificate of return to Diri, deputy
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has hailed yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court restoring its mandate in the Bayelsa State governorship election.
It would be recalled that the court had yesterday sacked the All Progressives Congress (APC) governor-elect of Bayelsa State, Mr. David Lyon on the grounds that his deputy, Mr. Biobarakuma Degi-Eremieoyo presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The court therefore ordered INEC to immediately declare the party with the highest number of lawful votes and geographical spread.
With the judgment, the candidate of the PDP, Mr. Douye Diri, who came second in the November 16 governorship election in the state became the beneficiary of the court ruling.
Notwithstanding, the PDP insisted that the court should right the wrongs in the Imo State governorship election judgment.
The party said in a statement by its national publicity secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan that the judgment will not change the course of its demand that the Supreme Court “rectifies the manifest and widely rejected mistakes contained in its judgment in the Imo state governorship election.”
“Our party insists that the Supreme Court will be redeeming its image and restoring public confidence on its infallibility by reviewing the Imo verdict given the manifold unjustifiable mistakes contained in that judgment.
“The PDP restates that the miscarriage of justice in the Imo state judgment is glaring given the established fact that the panel assumed the roles of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), by recognizing the votes concocted by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Senator Hope Uzodinma, which ended up increasing the total number of votes in the election to 950,952, over and above the INEC certified total accredited votes of 823,743.
“In another miscarriage of justice, the Supreme Court panel named Senator Uzodinma/APC as winner whereas it had on December 20, 2019 ruled that Uche Nwosu, and not Senator Uzodinma, won the APC governorship primary.
“The Supreme Court had also disqualified Uche Nwosu from the election for having acquired the governorship ticket of two political parties; the APC and the Action Alliance (AA), an aberration to the electoral laws.
“Our party holds that a judicial review on Imo governorship election has become inevitable because by these earlier rulings of the Supreme Court, not only is Sen. Uzodinma not a candidate, the judgments also nullified all the votes that could have been accruable to APC and AA and their candidate, Uche Nwosu, in the election, leaving the PDP candidate, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, as the incontestable winner of the election.
“The PDP congratulates the people of Bayelsa state, the governor-elect, Senator Douye Diri and his deputy governor-elect, Lawrence Ewrujakpor, as their mandate has been restored. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has presented the certificate of return to the candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Douye Diri as governor-elect of Bayelsa State.
Meanwhile, INEC has presented the certificate of return to Diri and his deputy, Mr. Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo.
A national commissioner of INEC, Mrs. May Agbamuche-Mbu (South-South) made the presentation at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja yesterday.
Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu had declared at a press conference that without the vote of the APC, the candidate of the PDP scored the highest number of lawful votes with 143,172.
“In compliance with the orders of the Supreme Court, the Commission met…morning and reviewed the result of the election in which 45 political parties contested.
“Without the votes scored by the All Progressives Congress (APC), whose candidates were deemed not to have participated in the election, the total number of lawful and valid votes cast in the election now stands at 146,999.
“Out of this figure, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) scored the highest number of lawful votes with 143,172.
Similarly, the Party has scored more than 25 per cent of the lawful votes cast in all the eight local government areas of the state.
“Furthermore, the total number of registered voters in places where election was not held or cancelled as a result of sundry violations is 90,822.
“The candidate of the Accord Party has the next highest score with 1,339 votes.
“The margin of lead between the candidates of the PDP and the Accord party is 141,833 votes. With this outcome, the election is conclusive at first ballot.
“Consequently, Senator Douye Diri and Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo of the PDP are hereby declared winners and returned elected as governor and deputy governor of Bayelsa state respectively,” Yakubu said.
