Akwa Ibom LG Poll: Confusion As 2 Winners Emerge in Akpabio’s LGA

• The election results of the just-concluded Akwa Ibom LG polls held on Saturday in the 31 LGAs and 369 wards of the state has sparked a fresh controversy
• This is because the PDP secured 30 LGAs while the APC reportedly secured the LGA of the Senate President Godswill Akpabio
• Interestingly, Ntiedo Usoro of the APC was declared as the chairman-elect after the returning officer named PDP candidate Enobong Patrick Friday as the winner of Akpabio’s LGA

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.

Confusion set in Akwa Ibom state as the State Independent Electoral Commission (AKISIEC) announced conflicting results in the just-concluded local government election held on Saturday, October 5.

Tension escalated in the state regarding the chairmanship seat in the Essien Udim local government area, the constituency of Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

Read also

“There’s no APC or PDP LG ”: Governor Eno swears in 31 new council chairmen in Akwa Ibom

How PDP, APC candidates emerged winners

Inyang Ating, a professor from the University of Uyo who served as the returning officer for Essien Udim LGA, had declared Enobong Patrick Friday of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner of the election in the area.

In a surprising twist, statewide results released on Sunday, October 6, by Elder Aniedi Ikoiwak, the chairman of AKISIEC, declared Ntiedo Usoro of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the elected candidate for Essien Udim LGA.

While the AKISIEC results did not disclose the specific vote counts for each candidate, Ating said PDP’s Friday scored a total of 55,612 votes, while Usoro Ntiedo of the APC got 686 votes.

Confusion in Akwa Ibom

After Inyang Ating announced the election result, AKISIEC published Ntiedo’s name as the winner of the poll despite PDP candidate Friday’s victory.

Read also

Akpabio fumes as PDP clears 30 councils in Akwa Ibom LG polls

The state electoral commission did not explain why Ntiedo was declared was the winner — contradicting the results announced by the returning officer.

The Cable confirmed the report in its publication on Monday, October 7.

Akpabio fumes as PDP clears 30 LGAs

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the PDP won 30 out of 31 local government councils in Akwa Ibom state during the October 6 elections.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio expressed his dissatisfaction with the PDP’s overwhelming win.

Akpabio highlighted a past instance where he allowed the opposition to win in Ini LGA during his governorship.

Proofreading by Nkem Ikeke, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng