Ilaje/Ese Odo bye Election: APC Candidate Want Election Canceled, Urges INEC to Conduct Fresh Poll

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The Candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) party in the Ilaje/Ese Odo bye election of Ondo State, Pastor Adewale Omojuwa has called for the total cancellation of the April 5 election into the Lower Chamber of the Federal House of Representatives.

Pastor Omojuwa said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Ondo state should conduct another fresh election for the area.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Ondo State as declared by the Returning Officer, Prof. Babatunde Adeyemi of the physics department at the Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA) declared the election 'inconclusive'.

Prof. Adeyemi revealed that the margin and distance between the Labour Party (LP) candidates, Hon. Kolade Akinjo who polled the total number of 23, 926 votes with his closest rival and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidates, Hon
Adewale Kukute with 22, 628 votes leaving a difference of 1,298 votes and rejected votes is over 1,800.

It was gathered that over 56, 455 total valid votes were minimum compared to the number of registered voters in areas where elections could not hold.

The Returning Officer said this violated the electoral law with an explaination that the margin of votes between contestants must be more than the number of votes cancelled and that INEC would conduct supplementary of election in the area affected mostly where ballot boxes were snatched and preventing electorates to exercise their franchise.

Addressing journalists in Akure,the APC candidate said the election was marred with various irregularities ranging from snatching of ballot boxes, kidnapping of INEC ad-hoc staff and massive thumb printing.

He posited that the election suppose to be a democratic exercise for people of the waterside to elect their representative into the lower chamber of the Federal Parliament but turned out to be a do and die contest between members ofthe ruling Labour Party and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Omojuwa revealed that his called for the cancellation of the bye election was after he had widely consulted members of his political parties and supporters.

His word: "Having widely consulted members of my political parties and supporters, I hereby reject the conduct and outcome of the election in its entity.

"I implored the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct fresh, free and fair election that befits a democratic society".

The former Chairman of the Ondo State Oil Producing Area Development Commission (OSOPADEC) also disclosed that what actually happened in the last week saturday election was direct struggle for power between Labour Party and Peoples Democratic Party members.

He stressed that he was would have congratulated the winner and not desperate about the outcome of the election if it was free and fair devoid of election fraud and malpractices.

"There can only be One winner in any contest. In the spirit of sportsmanship, I would have openly congratulated the winner of the election if I didn't emerge winner" Omojuwa said.

Ondo state born Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs and Chairman of the Federal Government Amnesty Programme, Kingsley Kuku had raised an alarm on the election day that fake voters card were detected.

The Collation officer for the election in Ese Odo local government area, Prof. Bode Okoriko had verbally told a gathering at the collation venue at Civic centre in Igbokoda that some INEC ad-hoc staff were held hostage by party hoodlums and threatened to thumb prints ballot papers with the bribe of Eight Thousand Naira (#8000.00) and it contravenes electoral laws.

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