PDP wins in Jigawa bye-election

Posted by African Examiner Femi Kehinde, News Sunday, September 22nd, 2013

By Femi Kehinde

Alhaji Abubakar Murtala of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been declared the winner of the State House of Assembly bye-election in Ringim Constituency of Jigawa state held on Saturday.

The INEC Chief Returning Officer, Alhaji Umar Sani, said that the PDP candidate polled 22,431 to defeat his close rival of All Progressive Congress (APC) who scored 11,533 votes.

A total of eight political parties participated in the bye-election following the death of the former Deputy Speaker of the state assembly, Alhaji Inuwa Udi in a road accident in August.

But the APC rejected the result, citing irregularities. Alhaji Farouq Aliyu, a chieftain of the APC in the state alleged that the party had been robbed of its electoral victory.

He alleged that election in some polling units were inconclusive because of the violence that erupted in those areas.