The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the Yobe South Senatorial District election inconclusive. This announcement was made by the Returning Officer, Prof. Shettima Saidu from the Federal University Gashua, Yobe, during a declaration in Potiskum on Monday. He reported that the leading candidates, Ibrahim Bomoi of the All Progressives Congress and Halilu Mazagane of the Peoples Democratic Party, received 69,417 and 68,800 votes, respectively.
However, Prof. Saidu noted that the margin of 617 votes between the candidates was less than the total number of votes that were cancelled during the election. The cancellations occurred at the Manawaci 003 Polling Unit in Fika Local Government due to incidents of over-voting and other irregularities. He emphasized that the cancellation was necessary because the total number of valid votes exceeded the number of accredited voters in that polling unit, which had 1,118 registered voters.
Saidu indicated that a fresh election would be conducted in the district, but it would only involve Bomoi and Mazagane. He clarified, “I want us to get it straight that the difference between the first and second positions is 617 votes. However, we had a total of 1,118 votes cancelled in the process of the election. If the difference was higher than the votes cancelled, then we would have declared the winner. But, by virtue of Section 4(2)(7) of the INEC Manual, where cancelled votes are higher than the lead margin, we can’t declare a winner.”
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