INEC Refuse to Postpone Edo Guber Polls

For those expecting a new date for the Edo guber elections, a decision has been made by the electoral commission to hold the election on Saturday as planned.

This comes a day after the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the Department of State Services (DSS) jointly issued a statement advising a shift.

BREAKING NEWS: INEC will proceed with the Govenorship election in Edo state on Saturday 10th September, 2016 as earlier scheduled.

— INEC Nigeria (@inecnigeria) September 8, 2016

Wednesday’s call for a postponement of the election by the security agencies came as a surprise to many as President Muhammadu Buhari was in Benin city for his party’s grand rally only a day before.

The DSS and Police had stated that intelligence gathered showed that some extremist groups were planning to carry out attacks in some parts of Edo state on September 12th and 13th. They therefore urged INEC to postpone the election to allow security agencies deal with the threats.

Observers however interpreted the call as an attempt to prevent a possible electoral defeat for the All Progressives Congress (APC).

INEC’s resolve to proceed with the election despite the ‘advice’ from the security agencies, the Edo governorship poll is bound to attract attention from within and beyond the country for more reasons than the ongoing supremacy battle between the ruling APC and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

A few persons have wondered if the DSS and police could be given the benefit of doubt, and are asking questions about the assurance of security for election officials.

The Edo governorship poll is majorly a contest between APC’s Godwin Obaseki and PDP’s Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu while Thompson Osadolor of the increasingly popular Kowa Party leads other candidates hoping to spin a surprise.