* APGA – 336,859 votes; PDP – 290,496
* Gov concedes defeat; Jonathan congratulates, says ‘the people have spoken’

By Chidi Nkwopara, Owerri and Daniel Idonor

Chief Rocha Anayo Okorocha, the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressive  Grand Alliance, APGA, has been declared winner of the governorship election in Imo State.

Okorocha polled a total of 336,859 votes to beat his closest rival of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and governor of the state, Chief Ikedi Godson Ohakim, who scored 290,496 to place second in the contest with a margin of 46,363.

Senator Ifeanyi Araraume of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) placed a distant third position with a total votes  of 107,608, while Chief Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) scored a paltry 3,063.

*Okorocha

Okorocha emerged victorious after the supplementary election  which took place on Friday in Ngor-Okpala, Mbaitoli and Egbeme local government areas of Imo State as well as Orji ward in Owerri north.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ordered the supplementary election after the April 26 gubernatorial election in the state was declared  inconclusive.

But the supplementary election also scheduled to hold in Oguta LGA was shelved.
President Goodluck Jonathan congratulated the governor-elect immediately after he was announced the winner of election yesterday. Ohakim also conceded defeat. The governor said he would not challenge the outcome of the poll in court.

Declaring Okorocha the winner of the election yesterday, the Returning Officer and Vice Chancellor of Federal University of Agriculture, Umudike, Professor Hillary Odo Edeoga, affirmed that he (Okorocha) satisfied the mandatory provisions of the Electoral Law.

Edeoga equally said that the valid votes cast for the 19 gubernatorial candidates during the poll stood at 750,955, while the rejected and total votes stood at 28,504 and 779459 respectively.

Problem in Oguta
Explaining why election did not take place in Oguta local council area during the supplementary poll, the Collation/Returning Officer for the area, Professor Udo Herbert, affirmed that as at 10.26a.m. when he led a team of INEC officials to the area, accreditation had not started.

He also said that midway into his inquiry as to why accreditation had not started, a team of soldiers brought in some boys who were allegedly thumb printing some ballot papers in the home of a PDP stalwart in the area.

Continuing, Herbert recalled that when no truce could be brokered at 5p.m., INEC directed them to return to Owerri, adding that “as a result of this development, no election was held in the entire local government area”.

He added: “By virtue of the powers conferred on me by the Electoral Act, I hereby declare that no election was held in Oguta local government area and no result is forthcoming from the area”.

The Supervising Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Aniedi Abasi Ikoiwak, explained that the Oguta poll was arranged in the same way as INEC did for the other local council areas.

He recalled that some party agents initially complained about  the stamps, insisted on the removal of the Assistant Electoral Officer, AEO, and insufficient number of voting cubicles.

“I quickly replaced the AEO. I sent a Hilux vehicle to deliver the cubicles to Oguta but I later learnt that the vehicle was not allowed in. I want to also say that no single voting material sent to Oguta is missing. They are still intact”, the REC said.

He noted that the electorate did not want to vote, adding that people have peddled all manner of rumour but INEC is probing the activities of seven of its staff already.

Celebrations
Owerri, the state capital, virtually stood still as loyalists of  APGA stormed the streets of the municipality to jubilate over the declaration of Okorocha  as the winner of the governorship election.

Motorcyclists, who were hitherto banned from plying the streets of the municipality, defied the order and displayed all manner of acrobatics in the process, while emergency dancing troops emerged to dance to their rhythmic tunes.

Traders, especially around  the New Market, Owerri, hired several commercial buses and headed for Ogboko, Ideato North local council area, country home of the governor-elect.

Many drinking places in the municipality were filled to the brim, even as Okorocha’s well wishers freely offered drinks to people or eat whatever was available in the place.

Some irate youths went further to dismantle all the campaign posters of Ohakim in Owerri municipality, while the posters of Okorocha was hoisted to replace the dismantled ones.

One of the APGA loyalists, who simply identified himself as Anayo, expressed happiness that all those who ran after cars for allegedly parking wrongly  will now disappear from the streets.

‘Wise choice’
Reacting to the result, the national chairman of APGA, Chief Victor Umeh, who was at the state INEC  headquarters in Owerri, said he was satisfied with the outcome of the governorship poll in the state.

He described the poll as “free, fair and credible”, and commended Imo people for “making a wise choice in Chief Rochas Okorocha”, stressing that the party will deliver on its electoral promises.

Mixed reactions in Government House
The situation in Government House, Owerri, was very calm as some of the staff were found in groups discussing the outcome of the governorship election in low tones.

Some of them who spoke to Sunday Vanguard on strict grounds of anonymity wondered why people who benefitted from the numerous projects constructed by the Ohakim administration still opted to vote against the man.

Another staff blamed his woe on the recent brush his security details had with a Catholic priest, adding that “the governor did everything to assuage the feelings of Catholics but it appears it did not do the expected magic”.

A third respondent simply said: “We are civil servants. We serve anybody who occupies the office. A new governor has been named. We are only looking forward to see how he will operate from the office”.

The people have spoken -Jonathan
Meanwhile, President Jonathan has congratulated the governor-elect on his victory at the polls. The congratulatory message is contained in a statement by Mr Ima Niboro, Special Adviser to the President, Media and Publicity.

The president said the people of Imo have spoken through the ballot box, and it is time to forge ahead in the task of further developing the state.

He assured the governor-elect of the Federal Government’s cooperation in the task ahead, and invited Okorocha to build on the achievements of the outgoing administration.

 ‘Imo must move on’

Taking his defeat with philosophical calm, Ohakim, yesterday, congratulated Okorocha on his successful outing in the governorship election.

The governor’s congratulatory message to the governor-elect, headlined, “Imo must move on”, which he personally signed, also showed  he would not  challenge the election in court.

“The good people of Imo State have spoken. I congratulate my brother and friend, Owelle Rochas Anayo Okorocha. Two most important legacies, among other legacies, I want to leave to Imo State are democracy and peace”, he stated.

“As  a democrat, I allowed the process to go on, in spite of overwhelming contentious issues”, Ohakim pointed out,  adding that as a lover of peace, he called for calm and rejected violence.

“The election has been keenly contested. Emotions ran high. The state has been polarized in the course of the election. I want to remind Imo people that we fought an election, not a war”.

While reminding all that the task before Imo leaders is to move the state forward, Ohakim  pleaded that the process of healing must begin immediately.

“Every leader who loves this state must help heal the scars of the election. I appeal to all those who have issues with the election, particularly those whose logos were omitted on the ballot,  to consider sheathing their sword”, the governor  pleaded.

He  told Okorocha that he would not wish his successor in office to suffer the distractions that were his lot for four years, stressing that “Imo  is bigger than all of us”.

Ohakim  promised that he will help his successor in every way possible to succeed, pointing out that Imo must move on and have peace.

“I thank Imo people for giving me the opportunity to serve them and for their support. In whatever capacity I find myself in future, I shall still serve Imo State with all my heart”.