Edo Poll: Accord Party Candidate, Enabulele Files Petition Against INEC, APC Claims Winner Of Edo Guber

…Says I have more supporting evidence than other parties that I won the election

By Simeon OSAJIE

The Edo State governorship candidate of Accord Party in the just concluded September 21 gubernatorial election, Dr. Bright Enabulele has filed petition at the Election Tribunal challenging the outcome of the exercise because the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) allegedly declared the Senator Monday Okpebholo of All Progressives Congress (APC) winner after committed fraud during the election.

Recall that the Accord Party’s governorship candidate, Dr. Bright Enabulele, has earlier alleged that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), compromised the recent Edo State governorship elections, describing it as the most corrupt in Nigeria’s history.

Enabulele who claimed that the results were manipulated by INEC in favour of APC pointing to his own experience at Ward 5, St Saviour Ivbiyeneva Primary School Unit 1 in the Ikpoba/Okha local government area, where he voted on live TV, but officially received zero votes from what the election umpire (INEC) announced.

Addressing journalists in Benin City after his counsel submitted his petition to the tribunal, Enabulele stated that he wants the tribunal to declare him winner of the election or cancel the entire exercise and conduct a fresh one because “there was fraud, intimidation, deliberate announcement of wrong results by INEC”.

According to him, “I doesn’t have anything against Monday Okpebholo but that I was against the process leading to APC governorship candidate emergence.

“The case is against three parties, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) who conducted the election, the APC candidate that they declared winner and his party, All Progressives Congress. The reason for the challenge is due to non-compliance of the electoral process. My mandate was stolen, there was fraud, intimidation and deliberate announcement of wrong results.

“Nigeria is a country governed by rule of law. I have been crying many days now due to the outcome of the election. We cannot continue to rely on human interference. The BVAS was made to reduce human interference, but the BVAS was manipulated, there was manipulation at the collation process. Many agents were intimidated to sign wrong results.

Going further, Dr. Enabulele added: “We are telling Nigerians that the most important thing is how our leaders emerge, if the process is wrong, then we can never get it right. I am not against the winner of the election, but against how the winner emerged, if somebody wins let him win correctly, if he loses, let him lose correctly. We cannot allow people’s votes to be stolen, it doesn’t matter whether it was 100 or 200. For me my mandate was stolen. They should declare me winner or cancel the election.”

The Accord Party governorship candidate also kicked against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) getting a court order to inspect the BIVAS as he believed that the BIVAS was an evidence that should be presented before the court and not to be inspected with the tendencies that it could be tampered with.

“I was told that PDP obtained a court order to inspect BIVAS, but for me again, it is wrong. Nobody should be given access to the BIVAS, because it is supposed to serve as evidence in the court. You cannot go to court without evidence. It is not about winning or losing, but that the will of the people should stand. Democracy is about the will of the people,” he said.