The U.S. Mission in Nigeria (USinNigeria) says its home government is closely monitoring the Edo State Governorship election appeal process.
In a statement, the U.S. Mission in Nigeria said it the monitoring is necessary particularly because of Civil Society’s concerns about critical issues related to the election including the ‘serious lapses in the collation process’ that were observed.
The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja had on Wednesday declined to nullify the election of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The tribunal, in its unanimous decision by a three-member panel led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, equally refused to order the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a fresh Governorship poll in Edo state.
However, the United States said in the statement issued via its X handle on Friday said: “The U.S. Mission in Nigeria is following the Edo election appeal process closely, particularly given civil society’s concerns about critical issues related to the election, such as ‘serious lapses in the collation process’ that were observed.
“Ambassador Mills reiterates his statement of September 24 that transparency and due process are crucial to maintaining public confidence in any democratic system.
“The United States reaffirms our commitment to supporting free, fair, transparent, and credible elections in Nigeria and will continue to monitor the situation closely.”
INEC declared that Okpebholo won the Edo governorship election with 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo, who garnered 247,655 votes.
Unhappy with the result, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and AP, along with their candidates, took the matter to the tribunal, arguing that the election did not follow the rules set by the Electoral Act of 2022.
Meanwhile, the PDP and its candidate Asue Ighodalo, have rejected the judgment in its entirety, vowing to appeal against it.
