Labour Party’s governorship candidate in the November 8 Anambra State election, George Moghalu, has rejected the result announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), alleging that the poll was marred by vote-buying, underage voting, and irregularities in ballot papers.
INEC had declared the incumbent governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), winner of the election after polling 422,664 votes. His closest rival, Nicholas Ukachukwu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), came second with 99,445 votes, while Paul Chukwuma of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) secured 37,753 votes.
Moghalu of the Labour Party came fourth with 10,576 votes.
Speaking with journalists at his Nnewi campaign office on Sunday afternoon, Moghalu dismissed the outcome, insisting that the entire exercise lacked transparency and credibility.
“The exercise was marred by widespread vote buying and reports of underage voting in several polling units. The November 8 governorship election in Anambra, in my view, fell short of expectations. I hereby reject it in its entirety,” Moghalu said.
He alleged that minors were seen openly carrying voter cards and were allowed to participate in the election, describing the situation as “a mockery of democracy.”
“Children who were not supposed to be carrying voter cards were seen voting. These are serious issues that raise questions about the integrity of the process,” he added.
Moghalu also claimed that in some polling stations, the Labour Party’s name appeared on the ballot paper without the party’s logo, making it difficult for supporters to identify the party’s position.
“In some areas, our voters were confused because the LP name appeared without our logo. That’s deliberate and unacceptable,” he said.
The Labour Party candidate stated that his team was still compiling reports from agents across the 21 local government areas of the state and would make a detailed statement after reviewing the findings.
“Once I get the comprehensive report, we will analyse it and determine our next line of action. But one thing is clear I reject the result,” Moghalu maintained.
Asked if he would challenge the outcome in court, the former Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority said it was too early to decide, noting that “rushing to court without facts would be premature.”
He also responded to reports that some LP agents abandoned their polling stations midway through voting. According to him, many left out of frustration due to the irregularities they witnessed.
The Independent National Electoral Commission has yet to respond to Moghalu’s allegations, but the commission’s officials in Awka earlier described the election as “largely peaceful, free, and fair.”
