Nasarawa State, Nigeria – The Nasarawa State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) raised concerns on Wednesday regarding the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) allocation of votes to the state governor, Abdullahi Sule of the All Progressives Congress (APC) during the 2023 governorship election in the state.
The PDP emphasized its respect for Governor Abdullahi Sule’s right to appeal the tribunal judgment, which declared PDP’s David Ombugadu as the winner of the governorship election. However, they seek clarity from INEC regarding the votes attributed to Governor Sule.
In a statement issued by the state’s PDP spokesperson, Ibrahim Hamza, the party underscored the need for INEC to provide explanations to the citizens of Nasarawa State concerning how they arrived at the number of votes assigned to the incumbent governor.
“As staunch supporters of our democratic process, we uphold AA Sule’s right to appeal the decision of the Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, which nullified his victory as governor by INEC and declared Dr. David Ombugadu as the duly elected governor of Nasarawa State.
“Nonetheless, it is imperative to clarify the grounds for this appeal, particularly in relation to the alleged discrepancies in the vote tally. While AA Sule initially celebrated and accepted INEC’s declaration that he secured 347,209 votes in the Nasarawa governorship election, he is now relying on the minority judgment of the Election Petitions Tribunal, which credited him with 295,402 votes as the basis for his appeal.”
The statement continued, “It should be noted that in March 2023, INEC asserted that AA Sule won the governorship election with 347,209 votes and allocated 283,016 votes to Dr. Ombugadu of the PDP. However, in the minority judgment delivered by Hon. Justice Ibrahim Mashi, AA Sule was found to have received only 295,402 votes, not the inflated figure of 347,209 initially assigned by INEC. The same minority judgment indicated that Ombugadu scored 291,603 votes, in contrast to the 283,016 votes allocated to him by INEC.
“The pressing question is where INEC derived the generous margin of 51,807 votes that it allocated to AA Sule, leading to his declaration as the elected governor of Nasarawa State, based on the ruling of the same minority judgment.”
Furthermore, the PDP pointed out that the governor’s appeal lacked substance and therefore would not stand.
“As the institution responsible for supervising our elections, INEC has a sacred duty to ensure that the will of the people is accurately represented. Any irregularities or discrepancies in the vote count must be thoroughly examined to uphold the trust of the electorate and the principles of democracy.
“In this case, neither INEC nor Sule’s claims can be fully trusted, as evidenced by the majority judgment of the tribunal, which confirmed a total of 293,287 votes in favor of Dr. Ombugadu of the PDP, rather than the 283,016 votes initially allocated to him by INEC. The Tribunal also affirmed that AA Sule received only 292,446 votes, not the inflated figure of 347,209 allocated to him by INEC.
“While every citizen has the right to seek legal redress, we believe that the appeal lacks the substantial grounds required to challenge the election results. The people of Nasarawa State, representing diverse tribes and religions, overwhelmingly voted for Dr. Ombugadu in the governorship election.”
This development raises questions about the integrity of the election process and underscores the importance of transparency in electoral matters.