Dr. Bright Enabulele, the governorship candidate of the Accord Party in the last Saturday’s gubernatorial election in Edo State, while reacting to the outcome of the poll, accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of compromising the conduct of the election.
The governorship candidate described the election as “the most corrupt in Nigeria’s history.”
Enabulele stated that the results were manipulated, citing 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 when the results were computed.
The discrepancy, he added, led him to question the credibility of the election results, emphasizing that a candidate’s vote not being counted undermined the entire electoral process. He called for an electoral system devoid of human interference, suggesting blockchain technology as a solution.
He also criticized the lack of use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) during the election.
In a video recording he sent to the party’s supporters, Enabulele said: “We just witnessed something on Saturday, something that is unbelievable in the 21st century, during the Edo State gubernatorial elections. Despite a lot of support and voters, we witnessed less than two votes being recorded. Even in my polling unit, only two votes were recorded.
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“There was a lot of vote-buying, voter suppression, inconsistencies, and even the BVAS that were used. Any election that requires human interference is not a credible election. If the state wants to move forward, I urge Edo INEC to ensure that our elections do not have human interference. The BVAS should be quashed. We invested so much money in the BVAS, which is supposed to be used.
“We just realized that the BVAS is not capturing any results. Everything was done manually. People are complaining that many of their votes are voided. In the rural areas, even in Ikpoba-Okha, Egor, and Oredo Local Government Areas, people are complaining. Most of the time, there was a lot of vote-buying, voter suppression, and people were chased away from voting. I don’t think this is the way to conduct elections. To me, I see this election as inconclusive. This election has to be conducted properly,” he pleaded.
While claiming that he won the election, the Accord Party flag bearer urged INEC “to do something quickly in respect to the election. The election should be rescheduled, and there should be a re-run because it violates our human rights and the principles of free and fair elections.
“For me, I see this election as not credible because it involved human interference. I took a ballot and went into the line. I took a picture while voting, but my vote was not counted. My vote went through as I submitted it; they said they were going to use the BVAS to submit my vote, but that was not the truth. So, I believe INEC should see this election as inconclusive and inconsistent, and it should be voided,” he further demanded.
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