Desmond Mgboh, Kano
The Chairman, Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC), Prof. Garba Ibrahim Sheka has declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner in Saturday’s Local Government Election in the state.
In a press conference held at the headquarters of the Commission on Sunday, the Chairman of the electoral Commission held that the All Progressive Congress won all the 44 Chairman seat and 484 councilor seats in the state.
While describing the election as largely peaceful and violent free, he explained that 25 political parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), participated in the election adding that the PDP fielded one Chairmanship candidate and 18 Councilorship candidates.
Professor Sheka admitted the delay in the distribution of sensitive electoral materials wile disclosing that the delay was as a result of the hitches recorded in the receipt of these materials.
He said that sensitive materials arrived Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano from China on the night before the elections adding that they received the materials at the Commission at about 4 00 am in the morning of Saturday, before the materials were distributed to the various local government areas and election centers.
The Chairman explained that that the Commission received a total sum of N600million from the state government for the payment of 35,000 ad-hoc staff and 44 Presiding Officers engaged across the local councils.
Professor Sheka defended the controversial cost of accessing the registration forms by the candidates , insisting that the cost was not imposed by his administration or the present state government, but had been there since when the PDP were running the government of the state.
He also dismissed concerns that the ruling APC swept all the seats in the Local Government polls, noting that even under an INEC during the PDP led government, the APC won governor seat, including the three senate seats, the whole House of Representatives seats and the whole of the House of Assembly seats in the state.
He said that from the look of things , Kano is a State that votes largely in a particular direction while pledging to inuguarte a study on where the pattern of voters choice in the state swings in a particular direction.