By Marcel Duru, Owerri, Joseph Amedu, Lokoja and Mike Tayese, Yenagoa

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has held the first off-cycle polls since the 2023 general elections on Sunday with Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi State as residents elected for their governors.

INEC has declared the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma of APC winner, defeating Samuel Anyanwu of the PDP, Labour Party (LP)’s Nneji Achonu, and 15 other opponents.

Uzodimma polled 540, 308 votes to defeat his closest rivals, PDP’s Anyanwu, who scored 71,503 votes and LP’s Achonu who got 64,081.

Ododo polled 446, 237 votes to defeat Murtala Ajaka of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), who came second with 259,052 votes.

A total of 46,084 regular and ad hoc staff were deployed in the three states, according to the electoral body.

At least 126 national and international organisations were accredited with 11,000 observers deployed for the elections, while 80 media organisations applied to deploy 1,203 personnel, including journalists and technical/support staff.

All 18 political parties contested in Kogi, while Imo and Bayelsa have 17 and 16 candidates, respectively. The parties deployed 137,934 agents made up of 130,093 polling and 7,841 collation agents for the election.

To ensure a secure environment for electoral conduct, the police mobilised a total of 92,565 personnel, including 27,000 in Bayelsa, 25,565 in Imo, and 40,000 in Kogi, and several assets such as five helicopters and 15 gunboats.

The Federal Road Safety Corps also deployed 1,500 operatives and 105 vehicles.

According to the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the elections would be held in 10,470 polling units across 649 electoral wards in 56 local government areas.

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Final vote counts for the Kogi State governorship election as at 10:09 pm on Sunday: total registered voters: 1,932,474; accredited voters: 794,500; votes polled by each party are as follows:

A – 1,254; AA – 1,440; AAC – 424; ADC – 259,052; ADP – 1064; APC – 446,237; APGA – 469; APM – 130; APP – 1,135; BP – 82; LP – 567; NNPP – 136; NRM – 242; PDP – 46,362; PRP – 781; SDP – 259,052; YPP – 868; ZLP – 227.

The total valid votes: 782,289; rejected votes: 9,601; total votes cast: 791,890.

In Kogi State, the INEC’s returning officer, Prof. Johnson Urame, said that the candidate of the APC got 446,237 votes.

The governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Alh. Muritala Yakubu Ajaka, who came second in the exercise, polled a total votes of SDP 259, 052 while the candidate of People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Dino Melaye, came third with the total number 46, 362 votes.

Prof. Johnson said “Ahmed Usman Ododo of the All Progressives Congress having satisfied the mandate of the law is declared the winner of Kogi state governorship election and returned elected”. 

However, the electoral umpire also announced that fresh polls will be conducted in 59 polling units in the Ogori/Magongo LGA of Kogi State next Saturday, November 18.

In Bayelsa State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on Sunday night, adjourned the collation of results in Bayelsa State till Monday (today) noon.

PDP’s Diri has won five of the eight local government areas in the state with APC’s Sylva clinching a local government.

Results from six of the eight local government areas in the state namely Kolokuma/Opokuma, Ogbia, Yenegoa, Sagbama, Nembe and Ekeremor have been collated. The remaining local government areas are Brass and Southern Ijaw.

Prof Faruq Kuta, who is the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University Of Technology, Minna, and the state Returning Officer for the election in Bayelsa adjourned the exercise on Sunday night.

Sixteen political parties sponsored candidates for the election in Bayelsa.

Diri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s main opponent, Timipre Sylva, is a former Minister of State For Petroleum Resources and an ex-governor of the state.

Sylva, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the poll, was first Bayelsa governor from May 2007 to April 2008 and later between May 2008 and January 2012.

Earlier on Sunday, the incumbent governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma has congratulated the people of Imo State for given him the opportunity to serve them for the second term, saying his victory in November 11, 2023 governorship election was watershed in the political history of Imo State, and vowed to eliminate insecurity.

“The margin of victory and the unanimous endorsement across the state, has united the state for one common cause, this is the first time since the creation of the Imo State, the entire people has spoken with one voice to validate the excellent performance of my administration

He called on the opposition parties to accept his victory in good faith and see his overwhelming reelection as a further challenge to produce best for the people of the State.

Uzodimma however congratulated the opponents in the election for a spirited fight and urged them to save the state from any further tensions by joining hands with to build the Imo of our dreams.

He gave assurance of mapping another strategy to end insecurity in Imo State, adding that by the special grace of God the second administration will be better than the last one.

Meanwhile, the candidate of the PDP in Kogi State, Senator Dino Melaye has asked the electoral umpire to cancel the election in the state.

Melaye spoke at a press conference on Sunday in Lokoja, the state’s capital.

He alleged that result sheets manifested even before the commencement of the accreditation of voters on Saturday.

“Yesterday in the five local governments of the central senatorial district in Kogi state, there was no election. In the end, surprisingly, accreditation was done manually, the BVAS was not used,” Melaye said.

“Prepared sheets manifested even before accreditation and evidence is all over the media.

“INEC as a matter of urgency must cancel the election. Many areas where I won, my agents were told there were no available result sheets to enter the result and we have evidence to back up these claims.

“As I speak to you, it is shameful that this is what our democracy has descended to. INEC has manifested ever more than before, that they cannot be trusted, they are biased, they are compromised, and they cannot be a neutral umpire.

“INEC officials, youth corps members were caught yesterday with prepared result sheets even before the commencement of the processes. A youth corps member was arrested with a prepared result and N1 million.”

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) has also called for the cancellation of the election in the central senatorial district of Kogi.

David Edibo, an agent of the SDP, in a petition addressed to the INEC returning officer at the collation center in Lokoja on Sunday, said the party did not accept the results of the election in five LGAs of the state.

INEC had on Saturday said it was investigating reports of pre-filled result sheets in some polling units in the state.

“Our attention has been drawn to a report that filled result sheets were discovered in some polling units in Kogi State. The Commission views this situation seriously,” the commission said in a statement posted on X.