Respite For Akpabio As AKISIEC Declares APC Winners In Council’s Poll

• Electoral body accuses absconded official of mix-up

With controversy trailing the Council’s election results announced for Essien Udim Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom, respite has come the way of Senate President, Goodwill Akpabio, courtesy of the Akwa Ibom State Independent Electoral Commission (AKISIEC).

Thanks to the electoral body, Senator Akpabio escaped political humiliation in his backyard as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate eventually emerged winners in the Saturday, October 5, 2024 Council poll in the area.

Sparing the Senate President some blushes, Chairman of AKISIEC, Aniedi Ikoiwak declared Ntiedo Usoro of the APC the duly elected candidate for Essien Udim LGA while also stating that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) reportedly swept to victory in all other LGAs of the State.

Senator Akpabio, a former Governor of the State, hails from Essien Udim local government which is currently in the eye of the storm.

Ikoiwak was reacting to the contents of a video posted on social media showing one Inyang Ating, a Professor from the University of Uyo, who purportedly served as the Returning Officer (RO) for the election in Essien Udim, declaring PDP’s Enobong Patrick as the winner.

However, reacting to the declaration, Ikoiwak said the RO for Essien Udim in the election was Professor Uduak Okon of the Department of Medical Sciences, University of Uyo, and not Ating as claimed in the viral video.

Ikoiwak further said having received a report from the Assistant Electoral Officer (AEO) that the Electoral Officer sent to Essien Udim had absconded with ballot materials, the Commission quickly sent the AEO back to the affected Council with necessary materials to conduct the election, and bring the results.

The AKISIEC boss stated that the RO for Essien Udim in the election was Prof Okon, who announced the authentic election result for APC as 51,751 and PDP as 22,799 votes and declared Usoro as the elected candidate for the LGA.

According to him; “The man who claimed to be the Returning Officer in Essien Udim was not even on the list of appointed Returning Officers for the Saturday’s exercise, while the so-called winning margin by the PDP candidate in the said video was too overwhelming to have denied the winner and his supporters will fail to react.

“It was when they discovered what the Polling Officer did in Essien Udim has been discovered by AKISIEC that they hurriedly went to somewhere in Ewet Housing, to capture the video, using drivers and unidentified persons as their crowd to announce what they presented to mislead the public.

“By the time they brought their result, they were told that Essien Udim’s result had already been filed and I had insisted that results must be recorded on form 08D and that is what was accepted from all the Local Government Areas”

Meanwhile, in the contentious video declaration, the presentation contradicts AKSIEC’s verdict, as the results announced indicated that the PDP won Senator Akpabio’s Local Government Areas with a hugely wide margin.

The Electoral Commission’s disowned RO, Prof Ating could be heard in the video saying; “I hereby certify that I was the Returning Officer for the election held on the 5th of October 2024.

“The election was contested, and the candidates received the following votes: Hon. Ntiedo Usoro of the APC got 686 votes; Engineer Enobong Patrick Friday of the PDP: 55,612 votes.

“Engineer Enobong Patrick Friday, having complied with the requirements of the law and having scored the majority of votes cast, is hereby declared elected.

“He also received more than 25% of the votes in all 13 wards of Essien Udim. I so declare, and I hereby sign as the Returning Officer”.

With these conflicting declarations of the polls’ winners by both AKISIEC and the self-acclaimed Returning Officer, it remains to be seen which direction the pendulum of victory would eventually swing.