Politics

PDP, LP reject results as INEC announces 10 states, APC leads

Published

3 years ago

February 28, 2023

Tinubu, Obi and Atiku

There was drama at the International Conference Centre (ICC) Abuja, the National Collation Centre for the presidential election, yesterday, as no fewer than nine political parties staged a walkout.

The opposition parties led by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hinged their action on what they described as connivance between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to rig the presidential election.

The protesting parties had demanded that the electoral umpire uploaded the polling units results into the INEC Results Viewing Portal (IReV) to authenticate the presented results.

Despite appeals from the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, to the parties to allow the process continue, the opposition party agents insisted on rejecting the results and continuation of the process.

Trouble started before the beginning of collation when Melaye, agent of the PDP, raised an observation that the figures of results announced by INEC for Ekiti State did not add up.

INEC had declared the presidential candidate of the APC, Bola Tinubu winner with 201,494 while Abubakar Atiku of the PDP 89, 554.

Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP) polled 11,397 votes while Rabiu Kwankwaso of New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) scored 264 votes; 1703 votes were cancelled due to bye-pass of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation Systems and over-voting.

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But in his observation, Melaye said after calculation done by the PDP, there was a discrepancy of an increase of 887 in the figures from Ekiti State.

Agents of the Action Alliance (AA), Kenneth Udeze and Umar Farouk of LP agreed with his observation.

But INEC, chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, insisted that the commission stood by the result declared by the collation officer of Ekiti State, Prof. Akeem Olawale Lasisi, Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Health Sciences, Ila Orangun, Osun State.

“I still insist that the figure presented by the state collection officer for the presidential election for Ekiti state of the total number of accredited voters is 315,058. This is what is on the spreadsheet that we screened yesterday. And this is also what is on the actual result manual recorded by the scope and signed by the PDP agent and agents of other political parties back in Ekiti state.

“But having said that, I’ve taken note of your observations, let us make progress on that one. But what we have here is exactly what I’ve said. And any other figure that is at variance with this one cannot supersede the official result presented. Let’s make progress.”

But Melaye was insistent and almost stalled the collation of Kwara State’s result. Despite appeals from INEC chairman to the parties to allow the process continue, the opposition party agents insisted on rejecting the results and continuation of the process.

Ignoring the appeals at the resumption of the second session of the presentation, the opposition parties insisted that they cannot be party to the fraud cooked by the ruling party and endorsed by the commission.

Speaking on behalf of the parties, Dino Melaye told newsmen: “What we are doing is to put the authenticity and veracity of the results into test otherwise we are only here to endorse the fraud that has been done from the units, wards, to the stated.

“We are going to prove that we are not here to rubber stamp what has been done. We have no other country to call our own and we are going to do everything humanly possible to ensure that the right thing is done.

“We will not allow this having suffered hunger, pain, kidnapping, poverty, killing we will not allow continuation of failure in this country. We must ensure that the right thing is done. But the INEC chairman is putting his integrity on test.

“Nigerians are watching; the world is watching and even the dead are watching to see what INEC will do. But the battle to ensure that only the authentic results will be announced today is a battle of no retreat no surrender,” Melaye warned.

However, at the resumption of the third session, nine political parties comprising SDP, PRP, YPP, NRM, A, AA, NNPP, BP, APC, disassociated themselves from the parties that staged the walkout.

•APC leads

Meanwhile, INEC has announced results of 10 states with the APC clearing Ekiti, Ondo, Ogun, Oyo, Kwara states, while PDP won Osun, Yobe, Gombe. The LP recorded an upset in Lagos, cleared Enugu and was leading in Delta State at press time.

In Kwara, the APC scored 263,572 votes while PDP and LP polled 136,209 and 31,166 votes respectively.

The PDP and APC polled 354,366 and 369,924 votes respectively to win Osun and Ondo states. The LP scored 23,383 votes in Osun and 44,405 votes in Ondo state.

The PDP scored 198, 567 votes to win Yobe State while the APC, NNPP and LP trailed with 151, 459, 10,270 and 2,406 respectively.

In Ogun, the APC polled 341,554 votes, PDP got 123,831 votes while LP got 85, 829. In Enugu, LP polled 428,640 votes to emerge winner, while PDP scored 15,749 votes and APC got 4772.

The ruling party was also in pole position to clinch Benue and Rivers states last night.

PDP won in Gombe, an APC controlled state, with 319,123 votes. The ruling party scored 146,977 votes while LP trailed with 26, 160 votes ahead of NNPP which got 10,520 votes.

SUN

Related Topics:APC Featured INEC LP PDP presidential results

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Politics

AMAC Polls Shock: Another PDP Candidate Withdraws from FCT Race, Backs APC

Published

10 hours ago

February 19, 2026

Trends Admin

AMAC Polls Shock: Another PDP Candidate Withdraws from FCT Race, Backs APC

Less than 48 hours before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chairmanship candidate for Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Hon. Zadna Dantani, has pulled out of the race and declared support for the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Hon. Christopher Zakka Maikalangu.

Dantani’s withdrawal follows a similar move in Bwari Area Council, where the PDP candidate, Hon. Julius Adamu, stepped down in favour of APC’s Joshua Ishaku Musa, signalling a major shift in political alignment ahead of Saturday’s elections.

In a formal declaration, Dantani explained that his decision was influenced by high-level intervention from the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, whom he described as both “party leader and FCT leader.”

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“I want to sincerely appreciate everyone who supported us. This decision is not about personal interests. The Honourable Minister of FCT, Barrister Nyesom Wike, emphasized that this is a brotherhood election. I am aligning with APC in support of the good works of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Dantani said.

Dantani also confirmed that he had completed all legal formalities, including submitting a letter of withdrawal to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), stating that the move was entirely voluntary and made after consultations with family and stakeholders.

He called on his supporters across AMAC’s 12 wards to vote for APC’s Christopher Maikalangu, describing the alignment as a step toward unity and effective governance in the territory.

Political analysts note that these high-profile PDP withdrawals in both AMAC and Bwari have reshaped the FCT political landscape, increasing APC’s chances of sweeping the elections and stirring debates about PDP’s internal cohesion ahead of upcoming local and national contests.

AMAC Polls Shock: Another PDP Candidate Withdraws from FCT Race, Backs APC

Politics

Updated: Rivers Senator Mpigi Barinada dies at 64

Published

12 hours ago

February 19, 2026

Trends Admin

Updated: Rivers Senator Mpigi Barinada dies at 64

Lawmaker representing the South East Senatorial district of Rivers State, Senator Mpigi Barinada is dead.

He was aged 64.

The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Works, Akin Alabi, confirmed the sad development in a tribute post on his official X handle on Thursday.

He wrote, “Good night my dear friend. Rest in Peace, Senator Mpigi Barinada. Sen Mpigi represented Rivers South East in the Senate”.

The Rivers Senator was the Chairman, Senate Committee on Works.

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Senator representing Nasarawa South, Mohammed Onawo, also paid glowing tribute to the late Rivers senator and urged his colleagues to honour his memory.

He spoke during the session of the Senate Committee on Culture and Tourism on Thursday.

First elected in 2011 to the lower house, he was re-elected for a second term in December 2016.

In 2019, he was elected as the Senator representing Rivers South East Senatorial District under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Updated: Rivers Senator Mpigi Barinada dies at 64

Politics

LP Crisis Deepens as Abure Faction Rejects Otti’s Reconciliation Call

Published

15 hours ago

February 19, 2026

Trends Admin

National Chairman of Labour Party (LP), Julius Abure

LP Crisis Deepens as Abure Faction Rejects Otti’s Reconciliation Call

The leadership crisis rocking the Labour Party (LP) has taken a new turn as the Julius Abure–led faction firmly rejected reconciliation efforts initiated by Abia State Governor Alex Otti, declaring it has no interest in any peace move proposed by him.

In a strongly worded response, the factional National Working Committee (NWC) led by Julius Abure described Governor Otti’s call for unity as dishonest, premature, and ill-fated, insisting that the internal dispute within the party is far from being resolved.

The Abure camp was reacting to Otti’s recent appeal for aggrieved factions within the party to sheathe their swords and work towards rebuilding the LP ahead of future elections. The governor had announced plans to set up a reconciliation committee, stating that the interim leadership would determine the appropriate timing.

However, the Abure faction dismissed the move outright, accusing Otti of playing a central role in triggering and escalating the crisis. According to the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, the governor lacks the moral authority to champion reconciliation.

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“We are not interested in any reconciliation being proposed by Governor Alex Otti because he is largely responsible for the crisis facing the party today,” Ifoh said. He questioned why the governor was rushing reconciliation talks when legal battles over the party’s leadership are still ongoing, stressing that the matter is “far from over.”

The rejection comes amid heightened tensions following the removal of Abure’s leadership details from the INEC portal, a development that further deepened divisions within the opposition party.

Background: How the Labour Party Leadership Crisis Began

The Labour Party crisis stems from a prolonged power struggle over national leadership, which intensified after the 2023 general elections that significantly boosted the party’s national profile.

At the heart of the dispute are two rival factions: one led by Julius Abure, the party’s embattled national chairman, and another aligned with Nenadi Usman, who heads an interim leadership structure.

The crisis escalated when a court of first instance issued an order that effectively recognized the Nenadi Usman–led group as the authentic leadership of the party. Acting on the ruling, the Independent National Electoral Commission adjusted its records, delisting the Abure-led NWC from its official portal.

While Abure’s faction has since filed an appeal and maintains that the court ruling is not final, the Usman-aligned camp has continued to operate as the recognized leadership, widening the rift within the party.

Governor Otti, one of the most prominent LP officeholders, has publicly aligned with reconciliation efforts, arguing that internal unity is critical for the party’s survival. However, the Abure faction views his actions as politically motivated interference, rather than a genuine peace initiative.

With legal proceedings still pending and both factions refusing to back down, the Labour Party remains deeply divided, raising fresh concerns about its cohesion and electoral prospects ahead of future political contests.