The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that the collation of results for the Edo State governorship election, held on Saturday, will commence in a few hours.
The commission stated that the process would officially begin at 10:00 am on Sunday at its headquarters in Benin, the state capital.
Dr. Anugbum Onuoha, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Edo State, made this known in a statement, reassuring the public that the process would be transparent.
Onuoha called for calm from political stakeholders and assured them that INEC remains committed to conducting a credible collation process.
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“This is to inform the general public, political stakeholders, and observers that the collation of results for the ongoing Edo State governorship election will resume today, Sunday, 22nd September 2024, at 10:00 am,” the statement read.
Onuoha emphasized that INEC is strictly adhering to all legal and procedural guidelines to ensure the collation is free, fair, and transparent.
He urged all parties to maintain peace as the commission works toward delivering accurate results.
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The announcement follows heightened tension in the state due to the delay in announcing the official results. Governor Godwin Obaseki had earlier visited the INEC office amid concerns over the delay, where he held a meeting with the REC behind closed doors.
The meeting, which lasted over an hour, also saw some All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters protesting outside the INEC office, expressing disapproval of the governor’s presence during the collation process.
Although the protest leader was later invited into the meeting, Governor Obaseki left the INEC office around 4:45 am without speaking to the press, as his security team barred journalists from approaching him.
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Meanwhile, INEC has been actively uploading results to its online portal, the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) platform.
As of the latest report, 4,439 out of 4,519 results had been uploaded, accounting for over 96 percent of the total.
According to the results available on the IReV portal, APC’s Senator Monday Okpebholo was leading in the Edo North Senatorial District, while PDP’s Asue Ighodalo was ahead in the Edo South Senatorial District.
