Governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Edo September 19 poll Osagie Ize-Iyamu has decided he would not be contesting his defeat in court.
Mr Ize-Iyamu lost the election to the incumbent Governor Godwin Obaseki of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In a statement he personally signed on Monday, Ize-Iyamu said the decision not to contest the outcome was borne out of the desire not to further cause tension in the state.
He, however, claimed the election was neither free nor fair contrary to reports.
According to him, “there were unlawful cancellations of results particularly from Urhonigbe South and North in Orhiomwon while results were falsified from many polling units in Ofunama in Ovia South West, and in parts of Ovia North East, Owan West, Oredo, Egor, Ikpoba-Okha, Esan North East, Esan West, Esan South East, and Uhunmwode Local Government Areas.”
He further accused security agents of collusion, saying they refused to intervene when “gun-wielding thugs took over collation centres in many locations.”
Ize-Iyamu also said “there were also several cases of malfunctioning card readers, which disenfranchised duly registered voters in addition to many cases of unregistered voters voting with pre-purchased voters’ cards not collected by their actual owners.”
Nonetheless, he said he would continue with two pre-election cases challenging Obaseki’s eligibility to partake in the election “just as our opponents have considered it their prerogative to also continue with their pre-election cases against us.”
