Domestic observers fault Ondo APC primary on figures, others

An accredited domestic observer group in the September 3, 2016 governorship primary of the All Progressives Congress in Ondo State has adjudged the election fraught with myriad of irregularities.

Leader of the group, Mr. Richards Adebayo, who gave a detailed report at a press conference in Akure yesterday, alleged that the electoral process had some noticeable shortcomings.

According to him: “The poll officials detected that the accreditation of delegates was hastily done without proper screening and many delegates were given unstamped tags.

“Some of the delegates that came to the voting centre were not accredited by the three major accreditation centres because they were not duly screened in contravention of the rules and the regulations of the electoral committee.”

Adebayo accused the chairman of the electoral committee, Alhaji Badaru Abubakar, of arranging “tainted” buses for delegates, saying: “Few of the contestants’ agents observed that such arrangement of vehicles to convey delegates to voting centre was outside agreed arrangement.

“Some of the contestants’ agents observed, alleged and protested that clusters of delegates were allowed to cast their votes in contravention of the regulations of the primary election.”

The group, which also pointed out a discrepancy in the number of registered delegates and accredited delegates, which were 2,874 and 2,754 in that order, faulted how the total votes cast amounted to 2,774.

It, therefore, recommended that political parties should allow more transparent and credible voting in the forthcoming elections, urging that the regulations must be sacrosanct.

Meanwhile, National President of Ondo State Eminent Persons Group, Mr. Banji Alabi, has dispelled all allegations to discredit the primary election, enjoining the contenders to accept their defeat in good faith.

Alabi, who flayed Dr. Segun Abraham for acting “in flagrant violation of a fundamental principle of law, stated that the latter should have maintained the high spirit of a democrat, which he exhibited as he congratulated Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, rather than join others like Chief Olusola Oke to protest against the result.

He added: “There was a processput in place by APC leadership to conduct the governorship primary election of Ondo State. Segun Abraham with all the information and resources available to him voluntarily submitted to this process.

“Please tell Segun Abraham that he cannot complain of an injury when he voluntarily submitted himself to the process. Tell him not to be a bad loser, and not to allow himself to be used against his own people and conscience.”