12th April, 2011
The Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, are in a tug of war over who won Saturday’s House of Representatives seat in Alimosho area of Lagos State, South West Nigeria.
If urgent step is not taken to remedy the situation, crisis may brew in Alimosho as the PDP rejected the result of the election which gave ACN victory as announced by the returning officer.
The result was announced on Monday morning by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC returning officer, Mr. Dan Ekere which gave the ACN candidate, Hon. Solomon Olamilekan 77,834 votes and the PDP candidate, Mr. Segun Adewale, 52,720 votes.
Before the result was announced, the PDP candidate, Adewale, popularly known as Aeroland, had on Sunday gone round Alimosho declaring himself winner while PDP’s supporters went on wild jubilation to the annoyance of the ACN supporters.
Adewale claimed that he won the election and that the ACN candidate could not claim to have defeated him at the polls.
He was later arrested by the police on Sunday and released on Monday, but on returning from detention, Adewale was said to have proclaimed himself the winner of the polls and mobilised his supporters who went about echoing Adewale’s victory song even when INEC had declared the ACN candidate the winner.
PDP leaders in the area accused INEC of rigging the election in favour of ACN, saying that their candidate actually won and called on INEC to order a re-run.
The result sheet was signed by all parties’ agents, including the PDP’s agent, Mr. Abiola Olawale but the PDP’s camp said it did not know Olawale as its party agent and that it told its agent not to sign the result sheet.
“We did not sign it. We don’t even know anybody called Abiola Olawale. Our party agent was Dada Olayinka. We asked him not to sign the result,†a PDP leader, Muftau Lawal said.
He alleged that the ACN, in collaboration with the police and INEC officials rigged the election by changing the venue slated for the final collation of results, adding that the PDP was demanding for a re-run.
However, the ACN candidate, Adeola insisted that he won the election by a wide margin as announced by INEC, denouncing claims by the PDP candidate, Adewale that he won the poll.
“I won with a wide margin,†Adeola said, while assuring his supporters to remain calm and peaceful.
Adeola accused the PDP of causing trouble in the area, saying that “PDP was the one fomenting trouble and shooting guns within the constituency. The records are there with the security agents. The PDP candidate signed several undertaking with the police and the SSS when his people were arrested.â€
He thanked his supporters and the people of the constituency for standing by him and promised not to disappoint them when he gets to the National Assembly, saying that he would ensure that the area was transformed.
Speaking with P.M.NEWS this morning on phone, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Lagos State , Dr. Kunle Ogunmola insisted that the ACN candidate, Adeola won the election as announced from the collation centre.
“The ACN won the election. This was the result gotten from the collation centre. The PDP cannot ask for a re-run, it is the INEC and the court that can call for a re-run,†he said, adding that what the PDP could do if unsatisfied with the result was to go to court to challenge it.
He said results were gotten from the various polling units which were later collated and announced and that each party agent had copies of the results, adding that “let them come up with theirs. Maybe they have information we don’t have.â€
—Kazeem Ugbodaga