President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Nigeria has said the outcome of the last Saturday Edo State Governorship election is a testimony that people are in support of his economic ideals and commitment in improving lives in the country.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu stated this in a press statement signed and made available by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga after the President own political party, All Progressives Congress, APC candidate, Monday Okpebholo was declared winner amid allegations of wrong use of men of the Nigeria Police Force for the falsification, inflation and manipulation of the election results at some collation centres after the Edo electorates casted their votes on Saturday.
President Tinubu said the way and manner Edo people conducted themselves during the election is a sign that Democracy is stable in Nigeria and InEC is committed in conducting free and fair elections in the West Africa country.
Bayo Onanuga in the news statement said: “President Bola Tinubu congratulates Senator Monday Okpebholo, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in Saturday’s Edo State governorship election, on his victory at the polls.
Senator Okpebholo was declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (InEC) on Sunday, having defeated other contenders for the position.
President Tinubu commends APC national leaders, Edo State leaders, and party governors for working hard to achieve victory. He says the victory testified to the people’s support for the ruling party, its progressive ideals, its economic reengineering programme and its commitment to improving the lives of Nigerians.
He urges Senator Okpebholo not to gloat over his victory but to see it as a challenging call to service. He encourages him to demonstrate magnanimity by reaching out to his political rivals and uniting the people of Edo State to ensure its development.
President Tinubu also praises other candidates who participated in the election for their contributions to advancing Nigeria’s democracy, saying peaceful political contests, such as the one on Saturday, portray Nigeria as a stable democracy.
The President urges all those aggrieved by the election outcome to seek redress through the legal channels.
In addition, the president commends the people of Edo State for their orderly and peaceful conduct during the election, underscoring the maturing of Nigeria’s democracy after 25 years.
“I commend the InEC and our security agencies for working round the clock to conduct a successful, peaceful and largely hitch-free exercise.
“InEC has once again demonstrated that it is committed to organising a free and fair election in our country”, President Tinubu says”.
We had reported that the last Saturday Edo State Gubernatorial election appeared to be a very big interest for the incumbent Governor of the State, Godwin Obaseki and the former governors of Edo and Rivers States who are currently the incumbent Senator representing Edo North and FCT Minister, Adams Oshiomhole and Nyesom Wike respectively.
Nyesom Wike had said he feel betrayed after he helped Governor Godwin Obaseki to secure power for his current second tenure in office through the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP when the then All Progressives Congress, APC National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole disqualified him from contesting the governorship seat on the platform of his then political party, APC in 2020.
Adams Oshiomhole had in several occasions also described Governor Obaseki as a betrayal, saying he regretted choosing him as successor in 2016.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had in 2020 called on Edo People to vote Governor Obaseki out of office and he shouldn’t be given second term to rule the people but many people in the state then picked offence on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu statements who was only then APC National Chieftain.
The 2023 Presidential election that got President Bola Ahmed Tinubu into power as Nigeria President has been an issue of concern to many.
Scores of people believed that the 2023 election was filled with irregularities, violence, disenfranchisement of eligible voters, manipulation of election results among other insinuations or allegations but the Nigeria Supreme Court of Justice ruled that the political parties and candidates who contested the 2023 presidential election outcome in court were not able to prove their case of wide spread margins of irregularities, manipulation of election results, violence, disenfranchisement even though the apex court noted that there were isolated cases of the allegations which were not enough to rule otherwise against Bola Ahmed Tinubu who was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission, InEC.
Governor Obaseki had refused to sign the traditional routine Peace Accord Agreement on the ground that those who ought to be the promoters of peace are already causing violence ahead the gubernatorial election by thus intimidating, harassing and arresting members of his political party, PDP, to weaken the chances of PDP winning the areas where the arrested and detained party chieftains hail from, saying, the authorities at the Federal Government are doing so for APC to win the the governorship by all means.
The tension in the state made the Benin Monarch, Omo N’oba N’edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare, the second, to order Bisusu sacrificial ceremony to alert the gods or deities in Benin Kingdom to avert any act of calamity before, during and after the governorship election.