UPDATED: INEC fixes March 11 for Enugu East senatorial election

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Friday fixed March 11 for the Enugu East senatorial election.

The election that was earlier slated to take place on Saturday has now been postponed following the killing of the Labour Party candidate in the district, Oyibo Chukwu, by gunmen.

Chukwu was killed alongside five others by a group of gunmen at Amechi-Awkunanaw in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State on Wednesday.

The INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, announced the development at a media briefing in Abuja.

Read also:87.2m PVCs Collected, Lagos leads with 6m – INEC

He said the election would take place on the same date as the governorship and state House of Assembly elections.

Yakubu said: “The party conveyed its intention to participate in the election for that constituency by replacing its deceased candidate. This request is in line with the provision of the law, section 34(1) of the Electoral Act, 2022.

“The Labour Party has provided satisfactory evidence of the death of its candidate. Consequently, the commission has suspended the election in the senatorial district as provided by law. We have already communicated this decision to our Enugu state office.

“Therefore, there will be no senatorial election in Enugu east senatorial district made up of six local government areas, 77 wards, and 1,630 polling units tomorrow, February 25, 2023.

“The election will now be combined with the governorship and state assemblies’ elections holding in the next two weeks — on 11th of March, 2023.”

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now