The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the Edo governorship election held last Saturday, despite controversies surrounding his birth records, similar to those faced by President Bola Tinubu.
PulseNets learned that Mr. Okpebholo secured 291,667 votes to defeat Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who garnered 247,274 votes, according to INEC’s returning officer, Prof. Faruk Kuta.
Before the election, PulseNets reported that documents revealed Mr. Okpebholo had submitted falsified birth records to INEC. These discrepancies mirrored those surrounding President Tinubu’s birth years, which have been cited as either 1952 or 1954.
Mr. Okpebholo’s filings with INEC featured conflicting birth dates, raising concerns about his eligibility. In the sworn declaration of age and academic records provided in Form EC-9, required for all candidates, PulseNets learnt that Mr. Okpebholo listed different birth dates. On March 24, 2024, in his submission to INEC, he swore under oath that he was born on August 29, 1970, a claim backed by a statutory affidavit from his brother, Ojeifo Joseph Okpebholo.
However, Mr. Okpebholo’s West African School Certificate (WASC), submitted to INEC, showed a different date of birth—August 29, 1972. Further adding to the discrepancies, PulseNets reported that his INEC voter registration profile listed his birth date as August 1, 1977, making it the third conflicting date on official records.
According to Section 29 (6) of the Electoral Act 2022, providing false information in an affidavit could result in disqualification. PulseNets learned that, should this disqualification occur, the candidate with the second-highest number of votes, Asue Ighodalo, could be declared the winner.
Also Read: Monday Okpebholo emerges Edo APC Governorship candidate
Despite several attempts to clarify the inconsistencies, Mr. Okpebholo did not respond to inquiries from PulseNets regarding his birth dates and chose not to engage in any media interviews throughout his campaign.
