Ibrahim, who spoke in Abuja yesterday, said he was disturbed that the commission had failed to recognise him despite the court’s ruling directing it to do so.
He alleged that INEC’s Acting Legal Adviser, Mrs. O.O. Babalola demanded 1million to act on the court order.The factional candidate said he had petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari on the alleged bribery request and also reported the matter to the INEC.
He said: “We had a judgment directing the INEC to collect our document for the governorship election in Ondo State, but it was not obeyed. We feel that this is an act of lawlessness that is capable of creating anarchy.
“We went to court where the INEC was also part of the proceedings and they undertook to obey the judgment. Now we had a judgment that was specific, directing that it should accept me as the candidate. The judgment was served on the electoral body which claimed to be studying it.”
However, in a swift reaction, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, said Ibrahim’s allegation was uncharitable and ungodly.
Oyekanmi said: “It is not true that Mrs. Babalola demanded one million dollar bribe from Ibrahim. Two other officials of INEC witnessed the encounter between Mrs. Babalola and Ibrahim, who brought a copy of his judgment and wanted to impress it on the commission to collect. But we told him that we already had a copy of the judgment. It is uncharitable and ungodly of a businessman of Ibrahim’s stature to make this kind of allegation”
Ibrahim had emerged as candidate of the Ali Modu-Sheriff’s faction of the party in late August. In his ruling, Justice Okon Abang ordered that Ibrahim be made to replace Eyitayo Jegede, the candidate selected by the Ahmed Markafi faction of the PDP.
