INEC suspends collation of Enugu, Abia results
(2.00 p.m., Monday 20 March 2023) The Independent National Electoral Commission national headquarters suspends Enugu and Abia governorship election results.
INEC said in a statement that it will carry out an internal review of the petitions filed by both parties against the conduct of the election in two local government areas and make a decision.
INEC decision was announced to stakeholders in Enugu and later reinforced through a statement signed by spokesperson Festus Okoye.
Here is the letter:
INEC in close-door meeting with security chiefs
(11.45 a.m. 20 March) The decision from the big security meeting just ended will be heard shortly. INEC officials are settling down for some big announcements.
Following security situation at INEC collation heads of security agencies in Enugu have gone into a closed-door meeting with INEC officials.
Our correspondent reports that the INEC Commissioner and Returning Officer are meeting with Police, Army, DSS, and Civil Defence chiefs in the State.
INEC has asked the parties and observers to wait for the decision to be taken at the meeting.
According to our reporter, there are three possible decisions:
1. Cancel Nsukka and Nkanu East returns and order fresh elections.
2. Cancel Nsukka and Nkanu East returns and declare results based on the other undisputed results.
3. Cancel only one of the disputed results, which will give one party an advantage
Labour is pushing for Option 3, which is it’s only pathway to victory.
PDP will maintain its lead with Option 2. The party will have 133,056 votes to Labour’s 125,376 if the result is announced without the disputed figures from Nsukka and Enugu East. The difference between them is 7,680 votes in favour of PDP
A cliff hanger in Enugu
With sixteen of seventeen local government areas declared, both the Peoples Democratic Party and Labour Party are waiting with bated breath.
The local government that may do the magic is Enugu East where Labour is hoping to get a final haul that will make it equal and surpass the PDP.
The margin between the candidates at this moment is 16,148 votes, advantage PDP.
However, Labour is contesting the figures recorded at Nkanu East, the PDP candidate’s home LGA. Labour claims that BVAS was discarded, allegedly leading to falsified figures.
The figures returned for Nkanu East was 30,350 (PDP) and 1,855 (Labour). Nsukka LGA however took the prize for highest votes recorded, at over 40,000.
As in Nkanu East, Labour won 30,294 while PDP came with with a modest 10,886 in comparison.
| LOCAL GOVT | PDP | Labour | APC | APGA |
| Aninri | 6,520 | 3,431 | 902 | 498 |
| Awgu | 10,668 | 5,462 | ||
| Ezeagu | 7,576 | 5,949 | 963 | 300 |
| Enugu South | 10,557 | 7438 | 560 | 3110 |
| Igboetiti | 8,959 | 11,941 | 939 | 1259 |
| Igboeze North | 8,738 | 9,955 | 541 | 250 |
| Igboeze South | 4,691 | 9,680 | 927 | 246 |
| Isiuzo | 6,381 | 12,518 | ||
| Nkanu East | 30,350 | 1,855 | 448 | 188 |
| Nkanu West | 8,382 | 2,577 | ||
| Nsukka | 10,886 | 30,294 | ||
| Oji River | 7,365 | 7,747 | 1060 | 246 |
| Udi | 13,633 | 10,109 | 1648 | 1724 |
| Uzo Uwani | 7,299 | 5,257 | 1019 | 169 |
| Enugu North | 9,333 | 9,610 | ||
| Udenu | 10,148 | 11,315 | ||
| Enugu East | ?? | ?? | ||
| Total | 161,486 | 145,338 |
Ugwuanyi Loses LGA
The Udenu LGA result just announced shows that the Governor lost his local government to his cousin from Isi Uzo.
The deputy governorship candidate of the PDP is also from the local government.
The result may seem to indicate a deep-seated resentment that is hard to fathom.
PDP however continues to lead with eight of the 15 LGAs announced thus far, and with a margin of 16,425 votes.
The result from Enugu East and Enugu North will determine the winner of the election shortly.
Peter Mbah takes a strong lead
With only three local governments left to declare, PDP candidate Peter Mbah has taken the lead,. So far, he has won 8 of the 14 LGAs declared so far and with a vote margin of 17,792 votes.
The Local Councils yet to be declared include Enugu East, Enugu North, and Udenu.
In the Enugu 2023 governorship election results so far announced by INEC, the predicted frontrunners, PDP and Labour Party, are in a tight race.
Both parties have won four local governments apiece, with Labour leading the popular vote by 436 votes.
Interestingly, both parties secured the mandatory 25 percent of the vote in the local government areas they lost. This sets the stage for an epic final if the trend continues.
In Enugu North, the parties shared the two LGA results announced.
In Enugu West, of the four LGAs announced, PDP won in three, while Labour picked up Oji River. The Labour deputy governorship candidate comes from Oji River.
It is also almost certain that PDP will win Awgu, the remaining LGA in the District. If this happens, the party will post an emphatic victory in Enugu West, as predicted by Enugu Metro.
INEC has been announcing the results at its Enugu collation centre since morning of today 19 March, a day after the elections.
The INEC officials have gone on a short break.
Check back soon for the rest of the results and the winner as declared by the electoral body
| S/N | LOCAL GOVT AREA | PDP | LABOUR |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aninri | 6,520 | 3,431 |
| 2 | Oji River | 7,365 | 7,747 |
| 3 | Ezeagu | 7,576 | 5,949 |
| 4 | Udi | 13,633 | 10,109 |
| 5 | Uzo Uwani | 7,299 | 5,257 |
| 6 | Igbo Etiti | 8,959 | 11,941 |
| 7 | Igboeze North | 8,738 | 9,955 |
| 8 | Isi Uzo | 6,381 | 12,518 |
| TOTAL SO FAR | 66,471 | 66,907 |
Enugu 2023 election results as announced by INEC