Yiaga Africa: Edo 2024 guber poll fails integrity test, calls for electoral reform

 From Moshood Karim

Yiaga Africa, a prominent civil society organisation, has raised serious concerns over the credibility of the recently concluded Edo 2024 gubernatorial election, in which Senator Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The organisation, using its Process and Results Verification for Transparency (PRVT) methodology, announced that the election failed to meet essential electoral integrity standards.

At a post-election reflection meeting in Benin City on Thursday with leaders from Edo Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and media partners, Yiaga Africa's Executive Director, Dr. Samson Itodo, and Chair of the 2024 Edo Election Mission, Dr. Aisha Abdullahi, issued a joint statement explaining the organisation's findings, revealing that, the PRVT methodology enables independent assessments of election day processes and the verification of results.

The statement outlined the major issues with the election, including incidents of result manipulation and disruptions during collation at ward and local government levels, notably in Ikpoba/Okha, Etsako West, Egor, and Oredo Local Government Areas.

Intimidation of INEC officials, observers, and party agents also compromised the process, resulting in violations of the Electoral Act and INEC guidelines.

INEC had announced that the APC secured 51.1% of the vote, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) 43.3%, and the Labour Party 4.0%.

However, Yiaga Africa's statistical analysis from 287 out of 300 sampled polling units revealed discrepancies in the official results. Specifically, the results for APC in Oredo and Egor LGAs, as well as those for PDP in Esan West LGA and Labour Party in Oredo LGA, fell outside the PRVT estimates.

"The disparities between the official results and our PRVT estimates suggest that the results were manipulated during collation," Yiaga Africa's statement read.

The organisation condemned the actions of INEC officials and security personnel who allegedly interfered with the process, calling for their investigation and prosecution.

Yiaga Africa also called for fundamental electoral reforms to restore public trust. Among their recommendations, they urged INEC to investigate the inconsistencies in results from Oredo, Egor, and Esan West LGAs, clarify the discrepancies, and issue detailed guidelines on reviewing results that contravene electoral laws.

They also pressed for the integration of INEC’s Results Viewing Portal (IReV) and the electronic transmission of results into the legal framework to ensure transparency.

During a panel session at the event, Rev. Fr. Benedict Onwugbenu, Director of Justice, Development, and Peace Commission (JDPC) for the Benin Archdiocese, echoed these concerns and called on INEC to re-examine the Edo governorship election.

Stakeholders at the meeting agreed on the need for increased voter education, stricter enforcement of electoral laws, and greater use of technology to prevent malpractice.