THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Wednesday declared incumbent Governor Nyesom Wike winner of the contentious poll.
Wike polled 886,264 to emerge the winner while the runner up, African Action Congress candidate, Biokpomabo Awara, scored 173,859. The margin stood at 712,405.
This was 24 days after the Commission abruptly suspended the Rivers State governorship election.
The Vice-Chancellor, Federal University Otuoke, Prof. Teddy Adias, who was the state Returning Officer, said it marked the end of an era that commenced on March 9, 2019 when citizens of the state trooped out to elect their governor.
He disclosed that the election was contested among over 50 political parties and that statistics showed that the number of registered voters as collated was 3,048741. The total number of accredited voters as collated was 1,130,445, while the total number of valid votes was 1,123,840.
He declared: “The candidate with maximum vote scored a total number of 886,264. The second polled maximum number of voters of 173,859. The margin of lead in these votes stands at 712,405. The total number of registered voters in areas where election did not hold or were cancelled stands at 249,324. I, this day, confirm again that I am the Returning Officer for this election and that Nyesom Ezenwo Wike of the PDP, having satisfied the requirement of the law, has scored the highest number of votes, is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected.”
In his reaction, Wike thanked party stalwarts and supporters at Government House, Port Harcourt, for showing him, love.
He also paid tribute to those who lost their lives, saying: “This victory, first of all, is dedicated to the Almighty God. This victory is dedicated to Rivers’ people and those who died in the course of protecting democracy, in course of protecting our votes to make sure that the will of the people stand.”
