Victor EzejaThe Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Governor Douye Diri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as winner of the 2023 Bayelsa State governorship election.
Diri has been re-elected to serve a second term of four years.
Announcing the final results after collation on Monday afternoon, the INEC state Returning Officer for the election, Professor Faruk Adamu Kuta, who is the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology Minna, said Diri polled a total of 175,196 votes to defeat his closest rival, Timipre Sylva of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who scored 110,108 votes. Labour Party candidate, Udengs Eradiri, came a distant third with 905 votes.
“Douye Diri of PDP having satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected,” Prof. Adamu Kuta stated.
Meanwhile, APC governorship candidate has rejected the outcome of the election, alleging that INEC worked in favour of PDP to deny the party victory.
The State APC chairman and state party collation agent, Chief Dennis Otiotio, who expressed his grievances over the outcome, shortly after the final results were announced at the Mahmood Yakubu Media Centre, INEC Bayelsa State, accused
INEC state collation officials of cancelling over 80,000 votes scored by the party.
He also refused to sign the official results sheet, claiming the APC won the elections.
“We will not be signing these results, Nembe about 29,000 votes were cancelled, that APC scored, in Southern Ijaw over 55,000 votes were cancelled and if you put the total votes cancelled that APC scored in the field which was about 84,806 votes and if you add it to what APC scored here, we won the election,” Otiotio said.
“It is clear that INEC has colluded and connived with the PDP to cancel our votes here in this INEC office not at the field. It is unprecedented and it has never happened anywhere and we are rejecting this results,” he added.
Bayelsa has eight local government areas. Diri won six LGAs while Sylva won two.
The state has a total of 1, 052, 852 registered voters according to INEC, while 372,000 voters were accredited for the election. Total votes cast was put at 291,212, valid votes, 287, 554, rejected votes, 3,658.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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