March 02 (THEWILL) – The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has rejected the results of the February 25 presidential election.
The party, in a statement issued on Thursday, by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, also rejected the declaration of the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Sen. Bola Tinubu, as President-elect by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Ologunagba said the PDP has commenced action to seek redress in court.
The party, however, demanded the immediate withdrawal of the INEC Certificate of Return issued to Tinubu and the cancellation of the presidential election declaration in line with its powers under Section 65 of the Electoral Act 2022.
“The Party Insists that INEC, in declaring the APC Presidential Candidate as winner, acted contrary to the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Electoral Act 2022 and the INEC Guidelines and Regulations for the conduct of the 2023 presidential election.
“The PDP holds that Its Presidential candidate, Abubakar clearly won the Feb. 25 presidential election, having evidently scored the majority of lawful votes cast by Nigerians at the Polling Units.
“Sadly, the election was marred by deliberate malpractices, including the non-use of the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) and INEC’s refusal/failure to transmit directly the results from Polling Units to its Server/Website in flagrant violation of Section 60 (4)(b) of the Electoral Act 2022,” the statement read.
Ologunagba alleged the violation of the Electoral Act by INEC as attested to by political parties, voters, Nigerians of all walks of life as well as local and international observers, paved the way for the alteration, falsification, switching of results and allocation of figures in favour of the APC.
He recalled how on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022, INEC through its National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, assured that results would be transmitted directly from the Polling Units to ensure the integrity and credibility of election results in Nigeria.
“By refusing, therefore, to transmit directly the results from the Polling Units, INEC violated the Electoral Act and its Rules and Regulation, compromised the process and marred the integrity and credibility of the election results.
“The PDP, therefore, asserts that consequent upon the violation by INEC of Section 60 (4) of the Electoral Act, 2022 and its Rules and Guidelines on the election, the results announced by the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, having not been earlier transmitted directly from the polling units before the announcement, are ultra vires, of no consequence and cannot stand.
“Consequently, our party and its presidential candidate have commenced action for legal redress to reclaim our victory in the 2023 Presidential election,” he added.
Ologunagba appealed to PDP supporters in Nigeria and across the world to remain calm, resilient, resolute and steadfast in the defence of democracy and the victory of the PDP in the election.
