Judex Okoro, Calabar, Joe Effiong, Uyo and Paul Osuyi, Asaba

Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade, is coasting home to victory as the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has cleared all the five local governments result so far declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

While Ayade is leading with 80,800 votes in the five councils so far collated by INEC, Senator John Owan Enoh of All Progressives Congress (APC) is trailing him with 33,634 while Eyo Ekpo (SPD) has 1,443.

The results also showed that the governorship candidate of APC, Enoh, lost in his Etung council to PDP.

PDP is also leading in the House of Assembly poll.

Declaring the Akpabuyo local government result, the Returning Officer, Prof. Christopher Aklaki, said  Ayade polled 12,614 to defeat Enoh, who scored 4,524 and Ekpo, 344 votes.

Announcing Ogoja council, the Returning Officer, Dr. Julius Adah, said PDP polled 28,798 votes, APC 7,466 votes and SDP 408 votes. 

In Calabar Municipal, the Returning Officer, Prof. Francisca Bassey, declared the PDP winner with 15,524 votes, against the APC’s 7,703 votes and SDP’s 465 votes. 

Also, in Etung local government area, the Returning Officer, Dr. Raphael Offiong, announced PDP winner with 6,282 votes while APC polled 3,892 votes and SDP, 46 votes. 

In Ikom local government area, the Returning Officer, Mr. John Ogabor, declared that PDP polled 16,862 votes to defeat APC which scored 10,049 votes, and SDP, 180 votes.

Also, in Akwa Ibom State, Governor Udom Emmanuel, who is also PDP governorship candidate, has gone into early lead in the governorship election results declared so far by INEC.

Emmanuel won in all 13 local government areas declared, so far, including Ikot Abasi, which is his opponent, Nsima Ekere’s home local government.

The governor won in Abak, Uyo, Ikot Abasi, where he comes from, Urueffong Uruko, Ini, Ibeno, Esit Eket, Uruan, Okobo, Nsit Atai, Nsit Ubium, Onna and Obot Akara.

Results announced in 15 councils showed that Emmanuel polled 259,260 votes against Ekere’s 88,064 votes.

In all 15 local government areas, the PDP candidate won Ekere by a wide margin.

Ona council, where Emmanuel is from, recorded one of the most noticeable leads. The PDP candidate polled 32,103 votes against Ekere’s 2,110 votes.

In Uyo council, Ekere polled 12,549 votes compared to Emmanuel’s 35,092 votes. In Eket, the PDP garnered 26,372 votes ahead of the APC’s 5,087 votes.

Results were cancelled in polling units across different councils. Violence, hijack of electoral materials, malfunctioning of card readers and ‘over voting’ were given as some of the reasons the results were cancelled.

In Abak council, for instance, there were reports of violence leading to cancellation of results in polling units across six wards.

The total number of voters in the units were 6,468.

In the result announced by Dr. Edwin Essien, the returning officer for the local government area, Ekere could only poll 7,549 votes against Emmanuel’s 9,335 out of the 17,469 valid votes recorded in the area.

In a related development, PDP governorship candidate in Delta State and incumbent governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, has established unassailable lead over his opponents in last Saturday’s elections.

As at 6.40pm, yesterday when the state collation office in Asaba adjourned for 30 minutes, the governor had already won in 17 out 18 local government areas as announced by the various council collation officers.

Okowa total votes in the 18 councils as at the time of filing this report was 561,603 votes with his closest rival, Great Ogboru of APC having 147,564 votes.

The governor scored the highest votes in his Ika North-East council with 67,417 votes to Ogboru’s 2,303 votes.

But Ogboru won in his Ethiope East council with 21,141 votes to Okowa’s 11,489 votes.

State Collation Officer, Prof. Serth Accra Jaja, was presiding over the collation exercise alongside the state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the INEC, Dr. Cyril Omorogbe and representatives of statutory security agencies.

In their various announcements, the council collation officers informed that some unit results were cancelled due to fighting, ballot box stuffing, snatching and card reader failure.

Seven more councils, including Uvwie, Ndokwa West, Warri South-West, Warri North, Bomadi, Burutu and Ughelli North are yet to be announced as at the time of filing this report.

But APC representative, Mr. Turner Ogboru, rejected the results so far announced, calling for total cancellation on allegation of over voting.