Despite caution by President Bola Tinubu that candidates play by the rules for a peaceful election, fear of violence dominates the Edo governorship election which begins today.
Although there’s heavy deployment of soldiers to strengthen security, citizens expressed fears that attempts to seize election materials in some local government areas are indications of a likely violence.
On the eve of the election, the three leading candidates suffered a barrage of fake news purporting that each had stepped down for the other, forcing them to make rebuttals.
There were reports that the candidate of the Labour Party, Olumide Akpata had stepped down, reports he quickly said were false as he is in the race to win.
Then the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) put out a statement that its candidate too is in the race after a statement the party said was fake emerged late Friday night that its candidate, Asue Ighodalo had stepped down.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) also denied a magistrate court in Abuja had disqualified its candidate, Monday Okpebholo.
Similarly, rumours that party bigwigs were moving about sharing money for vote buying gripped the people. The leading parties accused the other of sharing money to influence the election.
After all said and done, the three leading candidates will battle for over 2.2 million people the Independent National Electoral Commission said collected their PVCs.
The ruling party in the state, the PDP through its Deputy Director General of Media for the Asue/Ighodalo campaign, Dr Pedro Obaseki, frowned at the likely interference of the election by thugs.
He re-echoed his party’s fears that the process could be hijacked by thugs allegedly imported from Imo and Kogi states.
He said, “It has come to light that this is part of a larger strategy to compromise these materials in Oredo LGA. Other local governments targeted for similar disruptions include Egor, Uhunmwonde, and parts of Ovia Federal Constituency.”
The APC on its part said it’s ready. Talking to newsmen, the Publicity Secretary of the party in the state, Peter Uwadiae, said,
“Our campaign shows our readiness. We have done that which the law allows us to do and our campaign was issue-based.
“As a party, I can confirm that we are ready. Our fear is that one of the persons who killed the police officer at the Benin Airport is roaming freely and we hear he is in Edo Central mobilising for trouble and distorting the election, while other PDP leaders are also doing the same in Edo South.”
Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer of the Labour Party, Sam Uruopa, said the party was ready but urged INEC to be neutral.
“The LP candidate is well prepared, done the needful, gone round 18 LGs and the over 193 wards three times, and he is the only candidate that went to the riverine area with speedboats and he was readily accepted. I can tell you that his preparation is second to none.
“For now, we have not had any fear over the process but we are urging INEC, a Federal Government institution, to be an unbiased umpire and play by the rules of the game.”
Aside inducing voters and intimidation that may likely scare voters, the battle ground of Edo Central is likely to decide who emerges the winner.
Both the PDP and APC candidates are from Edo Central and aim to take a decisive victory to ensure deficits in the North senatorial zone where Adams Oshiomhole, a senator who had vigorously campaigned for the APC comes from.
Although the North is considered a stronghold of the APC, the PDP’s steady penetration has spiced up a perfectly close election.
Meanwhile, the Labour Party had tried to tie down it’s zone, the southern senatorial zone where the outgoing governor of the PDP, Godwin Obaseki is from. The current indication is that it will be unfair to allow power to remain in the zone.
Akpata however argued that voters would vote for capability.and capacity to deliver and urged them to ignore power rotation stressing that it has not helped.
As all the candidates and their parties said they are ready, INEC has also said it’s ready and reassured that “All the LG offices of the commission have their material with them. They will be warehoused in the Registration Area Centre in every LG.
“However, for security, they merged some of the RAC centres to become Super RAC centres, where the supervisors and polling unit officers will also camp for the night for easy access to their polling unit.”
Voting commences 8:30am and ends 2:30pm.