A suspected Peoples Democratic Party agent caused a stir at the Ikeja Collation Centre, Ikeja Local Government, when he overturned the Independent National Electoral Commission staff table to protest election results on Sunday night.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the disagreement started when the Returning Officer of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Olufunmilayo Bameke, called for the verifications of the results for signature.
The agent, dissatisfied with the figure, however, turned violent as he upturned the table of the INEC staff.
In the ensuing melee, the candidate of the PDP for the Ikeja Federal Constituency, Mutiu Kunle Okunola, became unconscious and was thereafter rescued and rushed to the nearest hospital.
However, Funmi Azike, PDP agent for ward 3, told NAN that the results at the collation centre were unacceptable to the party, adding that it does not reflect the votes monitored at the wards.
Azike said: “What we have here is a doctored result, which is not acceptable.
“Maybe the process of the grievance may not also be acceptable, but we should have been given a fair hearing.
“From the results that we have from the various centres, our candidate is the one leading, but things turned differently when we got here.”
The All Progressives Congress agent, Tunde Britto, however, debunked the claims, saying the process was free and fair.
Britto said: “There are no doctored results anywhere.
“The elections have been peaceful so far.
“The PDP candidate came here to act a script, but thank God the situation is under control.
“The PDP agent came here with the intention of disrupting the announcement of the House of Representatives result.
“I must commend the efforts of the security personnel, who did not use force during the confusion, which might have aggravated the tension.”
It took the maturity on the side of security agents in the centre to restore calm.
The Returning Officer of INEC, Prof. Olumide Adenuga, however, condemned the act, adding that the announcement of the winners would still go on.
Adenuga said: “In election, there are processes even for grievances.
“Anybody with such should approach the necessary organ.
“What the man in question did beat my imagination as he came to destroy things here.
“I must commend the refrain of the security personnel too.
“The announcement will go on since normalcy has been restored.”