Posted by By JULIANA FRANCIS on
As the Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Benin continues its hearing with counsel to the People's Democratic (PDP) beginning their cross examination of witnesses today, tension is mounting in the Action Congress (AC) camp as most of the votes voided last week by the tribunal were concentrated in Orhionmwon, the home of Adams Oshiomhole's running mate, Honourable Egbaramwen Odubu and other strongholds of the party.
As the Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Benin continues its hearing with counsel to the People's Democratic (PDP) beginning their cross examination of witnesses today, tension is mounting in the Action Congress (AC) camp as most of the votes voided last week by the tribunal were concentrated in Orhionmwon, the home of Adams Oshiomhole's running mate, Honourable Egbaramwen Odubu and other strongholds of the party.
No fewer than 68,605 votes were declared invalid by the election petition tribunal for unstamped or wrongly stamped ballot papers during the last April 14 governorship election in the state.
Reports said fears, however gripped members of the AC who throughout the weekend held marathon meetings at the campaign headquarters of Adams Oshiomhole in Benin City on realizing that most of the invalid votes were in the party's strongholds of Edo South Senatorial district and Etsako West local government councils.
Among the councils in Edo South Senatorial Districts where votes were declared invalid include Orhionmwon with 17,048, Uhunmwode with 12,889, Ovia South West with 8,906 and Ovia North East with 4,604 votes cancelled.
Adams Oshiomhole's native Etsako West also had 3,681 votes declared invalid while Igueben council, another stronghold of the AC where the party's chieftain, Chief Ikimi hails from got 3,318 votes cancelled.
Olawale Kayode, the Head of Operations for INEC in the state last week gave a graphic account of the series of irregularities that characterized the last gubernatorial election.
The Election Petition Tribunal had declared that the discrepancies were in 12 local government councils.