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Ekiti PDP rejects national, state Assembly, polls, heads for tribunal

By Ayodele Afolabi, Ado-Ekiti
18 March 2019   |   3:32 am
Ekiti State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said the Presidential, National and state Assembly polls defied all decent, civilised and acceptable approach to democratic elections and vowed to challenge the outcome in court. PDP State Chairman, Gboyega Oguntuwase, alleged that the polls were characterised by violence, ballot snatching and stuffing, as well as votes buying…

[FILE PHOTO] Polling booth

Ekiti State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said the Presidential, National and state Assembly polls defied all decent, civilised and acceptable approach to democratic elections and vowed to challenge the outcome in court.

PDP State Chairman, Gboyega Oguntuwase, alleged that the polls were characterised by violence, ballot snatching and stuffing, as well as votes buying perpetrated by All Progressives Congress (APC) members to win all legislative seats in the state.

Oguntuwase, who spoke to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, while reviewing the outcome of the exercise, said the party had resolved not to allow the rape of democracy go unchallenged hence its resolve to approach the judiciary, as the only available democratic process.

He said: “We have given all our candidates in the National Assembly elections the go-ahead to pursue their cases against the elections at the tribunal because if the ‘broad daylight robbery’ against democracy goes unchallenged, it will consume the nation and our democratic experience.

“The elections in Ekiti were marred by violence, ballot snatching, threat to lives, property and the entire state witnessed uncivilised attitude to politics.”

Oguntuwase, who hinged the resolve to challenge the elections outcome on the party’s commitment to purifying the system, however, did not disclose the team of lawyers engaged for the legal battle over what he described as tactical reasons.

“Nigeria is under the siege of self-deceit. We are appealing to APC not to destroy this nation and the democratic process. APC should learn from former President Goodluck Jonathan, who voluntarily, even before the conclusion of elections, conceded victory to APC because he shunned violence,” he said.

But in a swift reaction, state Publicity Secretary of APC, Ade Ajayi, dismissed the allegations, saying: “It is an afterthought. The elections in Ekiti were conducted under a peaceful atmosphere. Ekiti people went to the polls without violence.”

Ajayi, who noted that PDP’s resort to the tribunal was commendable, as it did not engage in violence, said: “We will meet them there. They are free to go to court. They have the constitutional backing to do so.’’

“I commend them for not resorting to violence. When we get to the court, we will defeat them again because the truth will always prevail.

“INEC was proactive enough to release the results as early as possible. Ekiti people realised that PDP deceived them for four years and they jettisoned PDP, as was reflected at the polls.”

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