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The Chairman of the
Senate Committee on Appropriation, Iyiola Omisore, has accepted the
verdict of the people of his constituency in the last Saturday election
where he lost his bid to return to the senate to Babajide Omoworare of
the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). The ACN won all seats for Osun
State in the National Assembly.

Speaking with
journalists yesterday, the senator, who represents Osun East in the
Upper chambers of the National Assembly, commended the turnout of the
people and peaceful conduct of the election, saying all point to a
hopeful future for the nation’s democracy.

Mr. Omisore, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is currently in his second term in the national legislature.

While
congratulating the winners, Mr. Omisore said the results of the
election confirms the readiness of President Goodluck Jonathan to give
the nation credible elections this time, and ensure that every eligible
Nigerian voter is not denied the right to choose their leaders and
representatives.

“I want to first
congratulate all the winners in last Saturday’s National Assembly
election. The peaceful conduct of the election was a clear signal that
our democracy has come to stay and that our politicians are improving.
Politics is a game of win and lose. If you win, you take it, if you
lost too, you should accept it in good faith. That is how we can
nurture our democracy into full maturity,” he enthused.

According to him,
the success of the first round of elections will prove to the world
that Nigerians are ready to allow democracy to thrive in their country,
adding “we cannot afford to fail because all eyes are on us. We need
credible and successful elections in this nation”.

He explained that
the result of the last election, especially in the Southwest, shows
that the ruling PDP was not as desperate as it had been portrayed in
the past by the oppositions, describing the party as one that ‘upholds
the tenets of democracy’.

The former deputy
governor of Osun State, advised the winning ACN members not to see
their victory as a ticket for self-serving mission, but a call to serve
the nation and opportunity to contribute their quota to the development
of their constituencies.

“The result of the
National Assembly elections should be regarded as the wish of the
electorate which we politicians must respect to safeguard the nation’s
growing democracy. In a true democracy, you don’t expect to be winning
every time. Even, life itself is about give and take,” he said.

He urged Nigerians
to be ready to participate fully in the remaining legs of this year’s
general elections, submitting that giving them priorities is the only
way to move the nation forward.

For this week’s
presidential election, Mr. Omisore said, “this is our country, all the
eligible voters must be ready to perform their civic duty by voting for
leaders of their choice”.

Delta State
recorded the highest cases of ballot box snatching in Saturday’s
National Assembly election, followed by Bayelsa and Imo states, the
Independent National Electoral Commission said yesterday.

The chairman of the
commission, Attahiru Jega, said the three states topped the chart of
incidences of diverted ballot boxes, amongst several other poll
malpractices but gave no specific figure.

An official of the
commission, however, said the highest number of the violation recorded
by Delta State during the relatively well-conducted election was nearly
50.

A spread of
detailed statistics of malpractices, including violence, diversion of
materials, lateness of officials and materials, during the elections on
state-by-state basis was expected from the commission on Monday. Mr.
Jega’s spokesperson, Kayode Idowu, later said there were problems with
the analysis of the data and the information would be made available
Tuesday.

Large-scale malpractice

While addressing
international observer teams, including the Commonwealth, African Union
and the National Democratic Institute, Mr. Jega said the worst cases of
the breaches, were recorded in the three states.

“There were
problems with thuggery. Luckily the police have made a number of
arrests in fact earlier today I got information that the police have
arrested over 500 people, many of them thugs,” he said.

“Delta is a state where we received most cases of ballot box snatching followed by Bayelsa and then followed by Imo states”.

Mr. Jega’s remarks
came as a growing number of political parties that lost in the
elections, laid complaints to the commission, amid concerns that the
overwhelming success of the election generally could deny attention on
genuine cases of violations no matter how minute they may appear.

The parties blamed
their defeat on large scale rigging by the ruling parties, ballot paper
stuffing and box snatching and demanded a rerun and redeployment of
INEC staff alleged to have been compromised.

In Bayelsa State
where one of the most damning cases of violence was recorded, the
opposition parties accused the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP)
of hijacking electoral materials in connivance with security operatives
including the police, the Joint Military Task Force (JTF) and some INEC
officials.

The parties, led by
the Labour Party (LP) Chairman in the state, Addo Badou, and the Action
Congress of Nigeria (ACN) told the electoral commission that elections
did not hold in six local government areas of the state. They demanded
the immediate removal of the State Resident Electoral Commissioner,
Edwin Nwatalari, for alleged connivance with the politicians.

‘Cancel the poll’

In Kwara State
where the PDP dominated in the election according to results announced,
the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) Sunday threatened to contest the
results of the elections. Opposition parties have made similar calls in
Benue, Adamawa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom states.

There are concerns
as to whether new measures including complex ballot paper security,
voters waiting behind to defend their votes and a customized ballot
box, are enough to deal with intricate electoral fraud scheme which
exploits human factor for a compromise.

In the case of Akwa
Ibom state where a raging rivalry between ruling PDP and the ACN
supporters recently reached violent dimensions, the parties say there
abound heaps of questions about the exercise and the commission says
they would be investigated when properly tabled before it.

After a startling
defeat margin on Saturday, the ACN has been quick to dismiss the
outcome of the elections and asked for a repeat as well as the removal
of the REC in that state, Maria Owi.

In a detailed
petition to Mr. Jega signed by the state chairman, Aniekan Akpan, the
party claims many of its agents were chased off from collation centres
by paid security agents siding with the ruling party while some corps
members were compelled to release surplus ballot papers to the party.

“Unused ballot
papers were not returned but were given to PDP members who used palm
kernels or bitter kola nuts to print in place of thumbs! What an
innovation,” the party said in the letter which spokesperson to Mr.
Jega, Kayode Idowu, said he could not confirm whether it had been
received as of Monday noon.

In a particular
case, in Essien Udim Local Government Area of the state, all registered
voters in the state voted for the People’s Democratic Party (PDP),
according to the announced results, leaving no allowance for voters who
died, travelled, took ill.

By yesterday, INEC headquarters could not confirm the total number
of petitions it has received already on the Saturday election.

The Action Congress
of Nigeria in Kwara State on Monday staged a protest in Ilorin
rejecting the outcome of Saturday’s National Assembly election that
gave the ruling Peoples Democratic Party a sweep to victory in the
state.

The protesters
alleged that the ruling party colluded with some INEC presiding
officers to influence the outcome of the poll, claiming that its
candidates were clearly leading at the wards level before the general
collation.

The peaceful
protest which was held in some parts of the state capital was, however,
planned to be heightened if INEC refuses to meet the protesters demand
for an investigation of the matter.

The ACN
governorship candidate in the state, Mohammed Dele Belgore, led the
protest with hundreds of youth holding brooms and chanting anti-ruling
party songs.

Also at the rally
were the Kwara ACN Caretaker Committee Chairman, Kayode Olawepo;
Senatorial Candidate (Kwara Central), Ibrahim Oloriegbe; Senatorial
Candidate (South), Anu Ibiwoye; Senatorial Candidate (North), Musa
Audu; and other party members.

Victory though the courts

Addressing the
rally, Mr. Belgore thanked the people of the state for their turn out
at the polls, declaring that “we know that they voted for us massively,
but their mandate was stolen.”

He, however, urged
the people not to “despair because we will restore this mandate through
the legal means. But let it be clear to these riggers that it can no
longer be business as usual.

“We will no longer
allow anybody to impose himself or herself on our people. The people of
Kwara want a change and this was what they demonstrated last Saturday
when they trooped out in thousands to vote for the ACN. But this
mandate was stolen. We will help our candidates to reclaim their stolen
mandate, no matter what. We urge our people to be calm and not to
resort to violence.”

He described the
rally as a means to send a strong message to election riggers and their
collaborators to desist henceforth, maintaining that the party “won the
election with a landslide but they manipulated the outcome in
continuation of the status quo. This will not stand.”

The party, through
its chairman, however, said that it will address a press briefing today
on the outcome of the election, saying the statement will adddress
issues of violent intimidation of the voters in areas like Asa,
Ifelodun where he alleged ACN agents were arrested and kept out of
circulation until the end of the election.

However when the
police spokesperson, Dabo Ezekiel was called at the end of the election
on Saturday, he told next that nobody was arrested throughout the
election, claiming that he was coming from the state CID to see the
situation of things there.

A day after the
election, reports of an arrest of 23 thugs was however announced but
Mr. Ezekiel refused to comment on the development when contacted.

However, the ruling party chairman, Yusuf Ayedun has also debunked
the allegation of rigging saying that whoever is not satisfied could go
to any length to get justice.

The Action Congress
of Nigeria ( ACN) and other opposition parties in Rivers State have
criticised the conduct of Saturday’s National Assembly elections in the
state, calling for the cancellation of the poll.

The results of the
election released by the Independent National Electoral Commission on
Sunday showed the Peoples Democratic Party was victorious in all 12
federal constituencies and the three Senatorial districts where
elections were held.

The ACN, however, claims the victory was earned through voter manipulation and rigging.

“In the collation
centres, our agents were refused entry by the Joint Task Force and the
Police. There were no results sheets in many areas of the state, such
as Khana, Degema, Gokana, Tai, Oyigbo, Obio/Akpor, Opobo/Nkoro, Onelga,
Andoni,” read the ACN statement, which was signed by Uche Okwukwu, the
state chairman of the party.

Similarly, Otonye
Briggs, the governorship candidate of the Congress for Political
Change, yesterday expressed dissatisfaction with the conduct of the
elections.

Mr Briggs said his
party was denied an opportunity to fully participate in the process as
there was no level playing field for political parties in the state.

He also accused
loyalists of the ruling PDP of intimidating and harassing CPC members
and supporters. In the course of the elections, he said, one of the
party’s members was killed in Abonnema, the capital of Akuku-Toru Local
Government Area.

Mr Briggs added
that the killing was the manifestation of acts of repression against
the party in the state. He, however, urged supporters of the party to
come out en masse for subsequent elections and vote for the CPC.

Barthlomew
Emuekperi of the All Progressives Grand Alliance also said his party
has problems with the elections. “No doubt, the elections were bad,” he
said when asked about his party’s reaction to the conduct and outcome
of the polls.

Mr Emuekperi said the party will be issuing an official statement on the elections.

No petitions

Despite the
complaints, none of the parties could confirm if they had written an
official petition to INEC. As at press time, neither the Resident
Electoral Commissioner, Aniedi Ikoiwak nor the Public Affairs Officer
of the Commission could be reached for comments on the matter.

The director of the Rotimi Amaechi campaign organisation, Ezebunwo
Nyesom Wike, said the allegations were false and challenged the
opposition to provide proof to back their claims.

Kazeem Adekilekun (not the real surname) has been
going to the Saraki’s home for political patronage since the age of 15.
Now 35 years old, he voted for the first time and also for the
politicians of his desire, saying it is goodbye to the political
dynasty in Ilorin.

“I used to follow my father here and I grew up to
start coming myself. Even when I was at Osiele College of Education, I
cannot come home during political era without coming here to be part of
whatever schedule for the time. I grew up to know it that way, but I
think that is gone, we have been liberated,” Mr. Adekilekun told NEXT
at his business centre around Taiwo Oke, Ilorin.

According to some of those who spoke to NEXT, the
ouster of the Sarakis’ is imminent, as most of them said that not even
the governor can come back from the Senate to contest and win.

“What Kwarans want is no Saraki in directing our
affair again. By the time a new person that is not installed by Baba is
not there – and I am sure that with the wave of things the marriage
between Bukola and PDP cannot last – then the state will soon start
enjoying the possibility of having new entrants in politics,” said
Sarafa Adekomi, a banker and father of two, at one of the popular
newspapers stand at Challenge.

Describing Olusola Saraki’s style of politics as
extinct, a young man who had come to see the possibility of sharing
money ahead of Saturday’s election, said: “Bukola Saraki gathered all
the youth of PDP to his side while baba is going with the elderly ones,
and now you can see what is all about. What I know is just that this is
the political era and I am here to get what belongs to me,” he said in
Yoruba.

New strategy

NEXT, however, gathered that the elder Saraki’s
party, the ACPN, had regrouped its loyalists by disowning some leaders
and youth who were alleged to have been more interested in the
financial benefits accruable from the party. It also organised groups
of youth into areas, for door-to-door campaign for the forthcoming
elections.

At Mr. Saraki’s Ode Opobiyi area ward, where the
state governor defeated his father’s party to the third position, no
one was willing to talk openly. While some jokingly said the squirrel,
which is ACPN’s logo, fell from the tree, others believe that the elder
Saraki is still relevant to the success of the state.