The deputy chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Campaign Council for the Edo State governorship election and governor of Imo state, Governor Hope Uzodinma, has denied a report that he rejected the outcome of the election.
According to a statement circulating on social media, the Imo State governor was quoted to have rejected the election in Edo last Saturday because it was marred by irregularities and that he vowed that victory will be served for APC at the court.
Debunking the purported statement on Monday, chief press secretary to the Imo governor, Oguwike Nwachuku, denied issuing any statement by Uzodinma, where he rejected the Saturday election in Edo state.
Nwachuku said the report was “obviously a fake name”, adding that it was manufactured by one Stan Walden Newyork.
The statement read: “There is a fake report trending on the social media which claims that Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State has rejected the recently announced Edo State governorship election result…
“No doubt, the authors of the fake reports are obviously the same characters we have always known who have been signing off press releases using the name and Office of the Chief Press Secretary/ Media Adviser to give their criminal, selfish and foolish intent some measure of credibility.
“The recent Edo State governorship election, like many others in the past involving Distinguished Senator Uzodinma, has provided them with yet another opportunity to feed the public with lies, lies and more lies, a vocation that seems to be their only known source of livelihood.
“In their desperation to discredit Governor Uzodinma on the outcome of the Edo governorship poll, they have cast innuendos; insinuating that he has rejected the outcome of the governorship election and that he had accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of being compromised, and that the All Progressive Congress (APC) will get judgment from the tribunal.
“Their insinuation also includes that the governor said that the entire process was marred by irregularities from INEC officials who, they claimed, sabotaged the system.
“Obviously relying on the position of Governor Uzodinma as the APC Deputy Chairman for the Edo Governorship Campaign Council, the criminal-minded writers of the irritating fake news did not stop at that. They had insinuated that the governor described the entire exercise as shameful”, he said.
Obaseki defeated Ize-Iyamu for the second time on Sunday, having also defeated him four years ago to emerge as the Edo State governor.
In the result of the Saturday election announced on Sunday by INEC, Obaseki polled a total vote of 307,955 to defeat Ize-Iyamu, who got 223,619 votes.
