Ahead of Saturday’s governorship election in Edo State, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has raised an alarm over the All Progressives Congress, APC, alleged plot to rig the poll. adding that Lagos State’s councils have been mandated to contribute N15million each to finance the rigging plan during the September 19 governorship election in the state.
Edo State Peoples Democratic Party Campaign Council has alleged that Lagos State’s councils have been mandated to contribute N15million each to finance the rigging plan during the September 19 governorship election in the state.
PDP also alleged that the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu and APC chieftains in Edo to rig and buy votes with N300 million polled from local councils in Lagos State during the election.
Chairman of the council’s publicity and media committee, Chris Osa Nehikhare, in a statement, said intelligence available to the council revealed that the local councils in Lagos State have been mandated to contribute N15 million each to finance the rigging plan.
According to him, “We are once again drawing the attention of the world and all lovers of democracy to the glaring fact that the APC is attempting to rig the Edo 2020 governorship election scheduled for Saturday, September 19, 2020, by mobilising N300 million from Lagos State local councils, each council contributing N15 million to execute the sinister plan.
“It is regrettable and disturbing that at a time when Lagosians are suffering from the vagaries of biting economic hardship superintendent by the APC government’s policies, the party is deploying Lagos State’s resources to subvert the will of Edo People.”
In a swift reaction to the allegation, the Chairman of the APC Media Campaign Council, Mr. John Mayaki said that Nehikhare “fabricated” the story.
According to him, “The PDP is renowned countrywide for its matchless fabrications. They are masters of falsehood, but whenever Nehikhare gets excited and tries to fabricate one, he overdoes it. It is glaring that the man did not know what he was saying. He should meet Chief Dan Orbih, his mentor, to teach him the art.”
Mayaki explained further that, “Edo people know that APC has no interest in dishonest politics. What do we stand to gain from buying votes that the people have already promised us? Why would Lagos local government councils raise that kind of money for us? Don’t they have anything to do with the money in Lagos? If Lagos went about furnishing APC states with that kind of outrageous sum, what will they use to develop themselves? I think their claim is due to our earlier exposure on Obaseki’s order to council chairmen to release the sum of N1.7 million to 18 local government Electoral Officers (EOs)”.
How APC plots to rig Edo governorship election – Ologbondiyan
In a related development PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, also alleged that APC plots to use frivolous lawsuit to rig the election.
Ologbondiyan claimed that APC’s defeat was imminent, hence the plot to rig the election.
The PDP spokesman also claimed that the opposition party in the state had concluded plans to use fringe political parties to approach the courts with a view to causing a constitutional crisis.
He noted that should APC succeed, the party would truncate the election and pave way for an unconstitutional takeover of the state.
The PDP’s spokesman further alleged that APC would use fringe political parties to blackmail the judiciary into halting the election.
According to Ologbondiyan: “The Peoples Democratic Party raises alarm over plots by certain interests recruited by the All Progressives Congress to use frivolous lawsuit to scuttle the September 19 Edo state governorship election, following APC’s realization that there is no way it can win the election.”