The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Olaka Nwogu, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as winner of Saturday’s Rivers south-east senatorial by-election.
Rosemary Ogu, INEC returning officer for the election, said Nwogu polled 47,961 votes; Beke Fabeke of the Action Alliance (AA) got 1,175 votes; Osarosaka Ebenezer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) received 1,647 votes; while Sam Bariboa of the Labour Party (LP) scored 367 votes.
The election was held to fill the vacancy following the death of Barinada Mpigi, who passed away in February.
Nwogu is aligned with the PDP faction backed by Nyesom Wike, minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Speaking after he was announced as the winner of the election, Nwogu promised to provide “effective representation” for the senatorial district.
Nwogu represented Tai/Eleme/Oyigbo in the house of representatives from 1999 until 2011 under the PDP platform.
The politician was elected senator in 2015 after defeating Magnus Abe of the APC, but the court of appeal nullified his victory, and he subsequently lost the ordered re-run election.
