Osun PDP warns INEC against altering declared polls results

• YCE urges continuation of vote count

• Election flawed but best ever, says monarch

Osun State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has warned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against uploading fake National Assembly election results on its backend servers.

In a statement, yesterday, caretaker chairman of the party, Adekunle Akindele, alerted the public of a sinister plot by National Assembly candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to collude with some officials of INEC to upload doctored results on the backend servers.

His words: “We have been reliably informed by insiders that the defeated APC candidates are working on an evil plot to tamper with the declared results of last Saturday’s National Assembly elections. The agenda is to upload false results through connivance with some unscrupulous INEC officials. Such fake results will defer from what has been announced.

“We are using this medium to strongly warn against any attempt to tamper with the will of Osun people. We specifically call on INEC officials to beware of hired elements who may compromise its system in service of APC.

Osun people massively voted for PDP legislative candidates. Any attempt to tamper with results already declared will be resisted by our people.”

Meanwhile, Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) has told INEC not to allow anything to hinder the counting of votes going on in Abuja.

Some aggrieved political parties, who were among the front-runners in the presidential and National Assembly elections, had questioned the integrity of the February 25, 2023 ballot.

In a chat with The Guardian, the Secretary-General of YCE, Mr. Oladipo Oyewole, urged INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to continue with his work. He argued that no one could teach Yakubu how to carry out the work he was employed to do.

The YCE scribe said: “Let the music play on. Before a whole professor goes the way he is doing, he must have his reasons to defend himself. I watched these things on television.

“All areas of criticism, we will call him to order and question him at the appropriate time. You have made him the head of the commission, let him complete the work.”

The Paramount Ruler of Iwoland, Dr. Abdulrasheed Akanbi, yesterday, commended INEC on the conduct of the presidential election, describing it as the best ever, though imperfect.

In a statement, yesterday, the monarch urged elder statesmen to be cautious with their utterances, as the country is progressing.

He said: “I am not saying the election is perfect, but it is the best ever. The elders benefitting from violence should allow us to grow. We are moving and improving. No rational mind should call for war with the objectivity and fairness of INEC.

Those who have ruled should juxtapose the election they supervised with this electoral legacy of President Muhammad Buhari.”

He said this is the first election, where unknown politicians were elected.

“The former Acting Chairman of APC, Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State, lost to another party. I read the story of Lagos State, the headquarters of Bola Tinubu’s supporters, where Peter Obi of the moment won convincingly. I was privy to Benue where a sitting governor lost his Senatorial ticket. Katsina, home of the President, was won by the opposition party. Nothing else should amaze you more than the APC Chairman, Sen. Adamu Abdullahi losing his unit to another candidate, and Osun State, where the first interim party chairman of APC lost to the PDP.