Ighodalo Laments “It Was a Robbery, Not an Election”
Mr. Asue Ighodalo, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the September 2024 Edo State governorship election, has condemned Thursday’s Supreme Court ruling affirming Senator Monday Okpebholo's victory, calling it a “tragic validation of coordinated robbery.”
In a personal statement released shortly after the apex court’s decision, Ighodalo said he accepts the finality of the judgment but not its integrity. “I do not and cannot pretend that what was delivered amounts to justice,” he declared.
Describing the entire election as a “coordinated, deliberate robbery,” Ighodalo accused both electoral actors and judicial institutions of betraying the will of the people. “You came out in hope. You voted for competence, for progress, for prosperity. And now, we are told your voice does not matter,” he lamented.
The PDP flagbearer expressed solidarity with his supporters, particularly young people who envisioned a rebirth for Edo. “We may not have won the office, but we found one another. We discovered our collective strength,” he said, vowing not to retreat or be silenced.
Despite the Supreme Court’s final ruling, Ighodalo warned that the “weight of this illegitimacy” will be felt across the state—in poor governance, flawed policies, and daily suffering. Still, he pledged to continue fighting for a better Edo, saying, “We are neither a fearful nor a broken people… all wounds heal.”
In a final message to Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ighodalo urged him to lead with humility and conscience. “History sees what the courts may not. And one day, it will deliver its own verdict,” he said.
