The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has summoned the people of Adamawa State, Nigerians, and the international community to disregard the purported declaration of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Aisha Dahiru Binani, as the victor of the Adamawa State governorship election.
The call was contained in a statement issued on Sunday by Debo Ologunagba, the National Publicity Secretary, in which it also demanded the immediate arrest and prosecution of the State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mallam Hudu Yunusa Ari, “for making such an illegal declaration in the criminal usurpation of the duties and powers of the Returning Officer, Prof. Mohammed Mele, while collation was on-going.”
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has already disowned the declaration by the REC and directed him to report to the national headquarters for his actions while the collation of results was yet to be concluded. The PDP added that it was even more absurd that the Adamawa State REC did not only usurp the powers of the returning officer but attempted to declare a winner without figures in reckless violation of the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Electoral Act 2022, the INEC Guidelines, as well as the sensibility of the people of Adamawa State.
This reprehensible criminal conduct of the Adamawa State REC confirms the earlier alarms by the PDP, which demanded his immediate removal from Adamawa State following evidence of his complicity and being compromised by the APC and its candidate to manipulate the election in their favor, notwithstanding the votes by the people of Adamawa State. Mallam Yunusa Ari’s action is subversive and calculated to cause a crisis in Adamawa State and destabilize the democracy and peaceful coexistence of a nation, as alleged by the PDP, which calls on the Inspector General of Police to instantly arrest Mallam Yunusa Ari and make him face the full wrath of the law for his conduct.
The PDP noted the pronouncement by INEC Headquarters that the action of Mallam Yunusa Ari is “null, void, and of no effect.” The party therefore demanded that INEC headquarters immediately direct the Returning Officer to complete collation, announce the results from the Polling Units, and declare their candidate, Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, the winner, having scored the majority of lawful votes cast.
