Senator Monday Okpebholo, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the ongoing Edo governorship election, has boasted that Asue Ighodalo, his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rival, will not get a single vote at Unit 03, Ward 1, Uwessan, Esan Central LGA in Edo.
Okpebholo said this after casting his ballot in the exercise.
“PDP or whatever will not get one vote here because this is my home and my people love me,” he said.
Okpebholo also commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), saying, “What I’m seeing here is like a testimony that INEC is getting it right.”
Asked to comment on his impression on security deployment for the election, the APC candidate said, “I know that everything they are saying about security – this, that – is ‘hyping’. I mean nothing is happening. You can see! Nobody is fighting. No knockout, no stick of matches. So is just for people to scare people away from voting.
“You know Obaseki wanted to cause fire in Edo state but by the grace of God everything is moving perfect.”
On the eve of the election, the APC had affirmed Okpebholo’s candidacy in the election.
Felix Morka, National Publicity Secretary of the party, had said the clarification became necessary following fake news that Okpebholo had been disqualified by a magistrate court.
“In the final hours to the Edo gubernatorial election scheduled to hold Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024, certain political parties have desperately resorted to forgery and disinformation on our candidate.”
“The blackmail is to the extent of circulating a fake magistrate court ruling purportedly disqualifying Sen.Okpebholo, the APC gubernatorial candidate in the election. The circulated ruling is fake, a fabrication and an act of pure desperation in the face of their imminent defeat at the polls,” Morka had said.
He said the magistrate’s court that purportedly issued the fake ruling had issued a disclaimer, stating categorically that it did not emanate from him.
Morka added that the fake ruling meant to sow seeds of doubt about the APC candidate, was a blatant and calculated attempt to subvert the will of the Edo electorate.
“We call on our law enforcement agencies to identify, investigate and bring the perpetrators of this falsehood to book,” he said.
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