INEC declares Diri as winner of Bayelsa guber poll

Duoye Diri, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has been declared the winner of the governorship election in Bayelsa state.

Diri, who contested for the second term in office, won the poll after scoring 175, 196 votes, to defeat close challenger, Timipre Sylva of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who scored 110, 108 votes.

Farouk Adamu, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) returning officer in Bayelsa, announced the results of the election on Monday afternoon.

The off-cycle governorship election in Bayelsa was one of the three conducted by INEC on Saturday — the others were in Kogi and Imo states.

According to the results, Diri won in six of the LGAs in the state while Sylva won in two.

INEC on Sunday adjourned the collation of election results in Bayelsa state till 12 p.m. on Monday.

Results from two LGAs – Brass and southern Ijaw were yet to be collated at the time.

Announcing the development to party agents, election observers and journalists at the collation centre, Wilfred Ifogah, head of INEC voters’ registration in Bayelsa, said there were challenges in the collation of results of some polling units and wards of the two LGAs.

However, at the collation centre in Yenagoa on Monday, the APC agent refused to sign the result sheet and alleged fraud.

He said INEC at the collation centre cancelled over 80,000 of his party’s votes across the state.

The agent said his party had sent a petition to INEC to review the result.