Rivers Re-Run: APC Wins South East Senatorial District, as PDP Leads East and West
Port Harcourt: Amid reports of violence and skirmishes in parts of the state, the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday won the Rivers South East Senatorial District. The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) maintained leads in Rivers East and Rivers West.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the candidate of the APC, Senator Magnus Abe, duly elected to represent the Rivers South East District at the Senate. Results of the remaining two senatorial districts, where the PDP was said to be leading, were not ready at press time.
A Federal High Court in Abuja had in December 2015 ordered reruns for 22 State House of Assembly, 12 House of Representatives and three senatorial seats. INEC’s attempts to conduct the polls on March 19, 2016 were disrupted by widespread violence that forced the commission to suspend elections in some areas.
An attempt to conclude the controversial elections by July 30 was again thwarted as INEC was forced to suspend the rerun indefinitely due to what it said was an arson attack on its office in Bori, Khana Local Government Area. The commission eventually fixed the re-run for December 10 after the Senate gave an ultimatum to that effect.
INEC’s officer, Prof. Gideon Onukwuisi, while announcing results at the collation centre in Bori, explained that, of the 154, 703 cast votes, 152,706 were valid, while 2,627 were rejected. Abe was said to have polled 125, 938 votes to defeat his PDP rival, Olaka Nwogu, who polled 25,394.
The APC candidate for Khana 2 Constituency, Mr. Friday Nkeeh, was declared winner of the House of Assembly election having scored 15,000 votes to beat his PDP, rival, Dinebari Loolo, who scored 4,000. Similarly, Dr. Innocent Barikor, APC, was declared winner of the Gokana State Constituency having polled 24,624 votes.
APC candidates, Barry Mpigi and Maurice Pronen, were declared winners of Tai/Oyigbo/Eleme and Gokana/ Khana Federal constituencies respectively.
Mpigi scored 48,760 votes while Pronen had 68,219 votes.
PDP candidate for Bonny State Constituency, Abiye Pepple, scored 6,610 to defeat APC’s, Henry Halliday, who scored 2330.
Results so far released in six of the eight local councils of Rivers East Senatorial District showed that PDP was leading with 77,691 to the APC’s 27,754.
