PDP candidate Ighodalo speaks on losing Edo governorship election

Asue Ighodalo, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the just-concluded Edo governorship election, has insisted, without proof, that he was robbed of victory.

“That day (the election day) will forever be etched in our history as one of our darkest moments, marked by the brazen theft of our mandate and the shameful subversion of the will of the people,” Mr Ighodalo said in a statement personally issued by him on Monday, two days after the election.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Monday Okpebholo, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), winner of Saturday’s election.

Mr Okpebholo scored 291,667 votes against Mr Ighodalo’s 247,274. The candidate of the Labour Party, Olumude Akpata, came third with 22,763 votes.

“From our perspective, the way these elections are going, they’re probably going to be the worst elections in the history of this country.

“We have information, for instance, where we have over 20 polling units, where the accredited voters are less than the total votes, which is not possible,” Mr Ighodalo said on Sunday while collation of results was going on.

Like Mr Ighodalo, the PDP and Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State have accused INEC and the APC of manipulating the outcome of the election.

“It is obvious to the least discerning the amount of impunity and reckless disregard for processes and law that was displayed in this gubernatorial election,” Mr Obaseki said in a recorded video he shared via his X account, apparently after the APC candidate was declared winner of the election on Sunday.

Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu has said that the APC’s victory in the Edo election shows that people support his policies.

Nigeria is currently experiencing the worst economic hardship in its history.

‘Not the end’

In his Monday press statement, Mr Ighodalo praised the Edo voters as the “true heroes of our democracy” and assured that their “sacrifices for a better Edo State will never be forgotten.”

Most voters cast their ballot while it rained heavily across the state, a situation Mr Ighodalo acknowledged in his statement.

He said that the voters faced “intimidation, threats of violence, harassment, arrests and financial inducements” and yet cast their votes “overwhelmingly” for him.

“We must not be discouraged. The illusory triumph of evil over good is only temporary,” Mr Ighodalo said. “Our journey towards a prosperous Edo State does not end here; it is just beginning.”

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The PDP candidate, who said the future is uncertain, did not say whether he would challenge the election outcome in court.

“Let us remain engaged, committed, and united in our collective resolve to create a Pathway to Prosperity for All in Edo State. You did not abandon me during our campaign, and I promise you that as we face a daunting and uncertain future together, I will not abandon you,” he said.