By Simon Ebegbulem, Gabriel Enogholase

Supporters of the Peo- ples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship candidate in the just concluded Edo State election, Pastor Osagie Ize- Iyamu, yesterday, took to the streets of Benin City, calling for the cancellation of the results announced by Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, declaring the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship candidate, Godwin Obaseki, winner of the September 28, governorship election.

It will be recalled that last week, supporters of the PDP governorship candidate took to the streets of Benin, protesting and condemning the result of the election which they said did not reflect the wishes of Edo voters.

The protesters, yesterday, marched through the streets at the Ize-Iyamu Campaign office on Akpakpava Road and moved to several parts of the Benin metropolis such as First East Circular Road, Second East Circular Road, Dawson Road and New Benin before returning to the Ize-Iyamu Campaign office, where they gathered once again.

They carried placards with inscriptions such as “INEC is biased, not independent,” “Return our stolen mandate,” “Police conspiracy with INEC to rigged the election,” “Return our stolen mandate to Ize-Iyamu,” among others and sang songs.

PDP protesters on Independence day

Spokesman for the protesters, Reverend Olu Martins, said it was historical and ironical that nine to 10 years ago, he was among the protesters, who occupied the streets of Benin to protest the injustice done Governor Adams Oshiomhole in the 2007 Edo State governorship election, adding that he was back in the streets this time around to protest an “electoral heist perpetrated by Oshiomhole.”

He said, “We will not stop until what rightfully belongs to the people is returned to them. The challenge is not what happened on September 28. It is the process.

“For the first time in Nigeria’s political process, international observers and journalists were barred from the collation of the result on the evening of an election and asked to come back the following day.

“By the time they came back the following day, the results were ready. That’s magical. They have subverted the will of the people so, we cannot stop protesting. It simply means that some people could sit at the INEC office and write results.

“This simply means that public goodwill does not matter. It is shocking that the will of the people could be subverted in the 21st century and in 2016. This portends danger for the election that will be conducted in Ondo State in November and the general election of 2019.

“Oshiomhole came through the rule of law. Is it not historical that this thing happened about nine or 10 years ago? We were in the street for Adams Oshiomhole? Is it also not ironical that we are in the streets against Adams Oshiomhole nine to 10 years later?”

But the APC in the state has urged Martins to stop destroying the credibility of civil society under the guise that he is protesting the result of the just concluded governorship election in the state.

APC, Anslem Ojezua who reacted to the protest, said, “Olu Martins cannot hide under civil society to protest for PDP because he has said it that he is supporting PDP and Ize-Iyamu. So the protest is organised by PDP members who lost woefully in this election. Olu Martins has confessed and admitted publicly that in this election he is supporting PDP and Pastor Ize-Iyamu.

“Let me also educate him, civil society organisations are only supposed to observe elections and submit their reports. When they start protesting, it gives the impression that they are now more catholic than the Pope. That is why I said that protest was by PDP members and it arose from their incapacity to return their candidate, Ize-Iyamu.”