More than two weeks after the Edo State off-cycle governorship election, the women’s wing of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) staged a peaceful protest on Tuesday, demanding the declaration of the party’s candidate, Asue Ighodalo, as the winner.
InfoStride News reports that the women, dressed in black, alleged that the mandate freely given to Ighodalo was stolen by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and handed to the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Senator Monday Okpebholo.
The women vowed to continue protesting until what they described as their “stolen mandate” was restored.
Carrying placards with inscriptions like “INEC sack Edo State Resident Electoral Commissioner” and “Edo PDP won the election but INEC and police colluded to change it,” the protesters marched through major streets in Benin and visited the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) office in Edo State.
Hon. Stella Okoro, spokesperson for the group and a former chairman of Esan West Local Government Council, expressed the women’s frustration over the election results.
She claimed that Asue Ighodalo was the rightful winner but had been denied victory through manipulation.
“We are here today at the NUJ to express our deep pain over our stolen mandate. Edo people voted for Asue Ighodalo, and that is why we, the mothers, are here today.
We are mourning; we are in black, demanding that INEC return the mandate to the rightful winner,” Okoro stated.
She also accused security agencies of intimidating voters, claiming that the police and soldiers were used to oppress PDP supporters and manipulate the results in favor of the APC.
“Our people were arrested, taken to Abuja, and some were detained at the State CID. Despite all the intimidation, Edo people stood firm and voted for Ighodalo,” Okoro added.
Oredo women leader, Lady Meg Agbokhai, also spoke, emphasizing the effort the PDP had put into the campaign.
She urged the authorities to respect the will of the people and return the mandate to Ighodalo.
“We toured the 192 wards in Edo State, and people came out en masse to vote for PDP. We worked hard for this mandate, and we will not sit by and watch it stolen,” Agbokhai said.
The women concluded by calling on INEC and other authorities to act swiftly in addressing their grievances, warning that they would not rest until the mandate is restored.
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