…Promises all inclusive government
…Jubilant supporters celebrate PDP victory
By Ado Hassan, Sokoto
The Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) has declared candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) and incumbent Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal winner of the Sokoto state Governorship election.
Tambuwal who polled 512, 002 got reelected after a kin contest with a lead margin of 342 votes to defeat his opponent and former deputy Governor Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto who scored 511,660 emerged victorious following a rerun that was preceded by an inconclusive verdict in the March 9th elections.
In the earlier results before the rerun, Tambuwal had a total votes of 489,558 with a margin of 3,413 against APC’s Aliyu Sokoto who polled 486,145.
Declaring the results in Sokoto Sunday morning at the Sultan Muhammadu Maccido Institute for Quranic and General Studies, venue of the collation, the Returning Officer and Vice Chancellor of the Jigawa state University, Dutse, Professor Fatima Batulli Mukhtar who reeled out the results of the rerun said the APC got 25,515 while the opposition PDP scored 22, 444 from the 22 local governments where the exercise was conducted.
According to Mukhtar, the total registered voters was 95,022 while those accredited were 50,332 with a total valid vote cast of 48,309 and rejected votes of 1,580 as 49,970 total vote cast were recorded in the supplementary polls.
Merging the final results, the Returning Officer said PDP scored 512,000 while APC returned 511,660 votes with a total registered voters of 1,887,767 and 1,083,413 accredited for the exercise across the state.
Mukhtar also gave total valid votes as 1,036,336 with 31,662 as rejected votes while 1,067,990 represented total vote cast.
” That Aminu Waziri Tambuwal having satisfied the electoral requirements and returned the highest votes is hereby declared winner of the Sokoto state governorship election”, She announced amidts victory ovation by supporters and party agents of the PDP.
In a swift reaction to the declaration , APC agent and campaign DG f the party, Alhaji Muhammadu Maigari Dingyadi objected to the presentation of the result from Kebbe local government based on two fundamental issues including malfunctioning of the smart card reader and non conduct of the exercise in some polling units, urging INEC to look into that by doing the needful.
” We strongly object the result from Kebbe and call on the electoral umpire to do the needful.”
In its dispassionate response, the electoral body noted the observations and complaints raised by the APC saying that it will be in its record for possible attention.
Meanwhile, jubilation by PDP supporters and well wishers trailed the announcement of the results with motorcycle riders all over major streets of Sokoto demonstrating their joy as security was tight to pro actively forestall attempt to break law and order by miscreants.
However, the atmosphere in the caliphate remain calm as jubilation continued in all nook and crannies .
Meanwhile, Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal has assured of running an all inclusive government that would move the Sokoto state to purposeful heights with opportunities for all.
Tambuwal who was shortly announced winner of governorship elections after defeating his opponent, Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto by a slim margin in a tough contested polls made the remark when a tumultuous crowd of jubilant supporters and well wishers thronged Government House in celebration of his victory.
The governor who is reelected for the second term of another four years expressed appreciation to the entire people of the state especially PDP members for the feat he described as the will of God.
” I am thanking Allah for what we are witnessing today in our political journey that is blessed with victory. It is not my making nor anyone’s but us something that ha been destined by Allah. It is the collective efforts of Sokoto state people.”
Tambuwal however appealed to the jubilant supporters mostly youths to conduct themselves in a peaceful and orderly manner while expressing their joy for the victory.
Further more, Government House Sokoto continued to be a bee hive of activities with all kinds of victory slogans, songs and music renting the air as major streets in the metropolis taken over by jubilant supporters in a motor cade with others on motorcycles singing” Sai Mutawalle” just as they lite fire on bunches of brooms declaring the end of APC in Sokoto.
