Confusion In Adamawa As INEC Voids Declaration Of Binani As New Governor
Confusion has gripped Adamawa State, as the All Progressive Congress (APC) candidate, Senator Aisha Binani was declared winner of the stalemated governorship poll.
Less than an hour after, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said the declaration of Binani as the new governor was null and void, and of no effect.
The confusion started after the collation of results from 10 out of 20 local government areas with Governor Ahmadu Finitiri of the People Democratic Party (PDP), leading with a wide margin.
The INEC returning officer for the poll, adjourned the collation of remaining results till 11 am on Sunday.
Before the resumption of the collation exercise, the state INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Professor Hudu Ari, announced Binani, of the APC candidate, as winner of the poll.
INEC National Commissioner in charge of information and voter education, Festus Okoye, faulted the declaration, accusing the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner of usurping the responsibilities of the Returning Officer.
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INEC summoned both INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner and the Returning Officer to its Abuja office.
Meanwhile, the PDP has insisted that its candidate, Governor Ahmadu Finitiri is the winner of the Adamawa State governorship poll.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, in a statement on Sunday, said the governor should be declared the winner of the poll, based on the results collated so far.
The PDP asks Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to imediately direct the poll’s INEC Returning Officer, Professor Mohammed Mele, to return to Adamawa, conclude the collation of the results, and announce Governor Finitiri as the winner.
It also demanded the arrest of the state INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Hudu Ari, for declaring the APC candidate the winner of the poll, while the collation of results was still ongoing.
The INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, according to the PDP committed criminal usurpation of the statutory role of the INEC Returning Officer, in making what it regards as fraudulent declaration of winner of poll whose collation of its results not yet concluded.
