The Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) published an alarming report on Monday, shedding light on alleged irregularities surrounding the Edo State governorship election held on September 21, 2024. The investigation suggests that the election may have been manipulated to favor the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Monday Okpebholo.
In the report, which is available on its official website, FIJ claims that the electoral process was marred by significant issues, including voter suppression, acts of violence, and the distortion of results. Specifically, the findings call into question the integrity of the results from Etsako West Local Government Area, where the APC reportedly secured 32,107 votes compared to the 17,483 votes garnered by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
A particularly striking detail from the investigation indicates that the Certified True Copy (CTC) of collation results from Etsako West was misidentified as a “Replacement Copy,” lacking the official INEC stamp typically found on such documents from other local government areas.
Furthermore, the report alleges that the collation procedure at the Auchi Council Hall was disrupted by gunfire early on September 22, resulting in the loss of crucial electoral documents.
FIJ also accused certain stakeholders within the APC of orchestrating voter suppression in areas dominated by other political parties, while exerting influence over officials from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to manipulate results during the collation process.
Highlighting concerns about compliance with technological mandates, the report pointed out that despite orders to utilize the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for electronic result transmission, there were numerous instances of non-compliance at polling units. As a result, manual collation of votes occurred in some regions, creating vulnerabilities for potential manipulation.
