A socio cultural group, the Peoples' Assembly (PA), has raised an alarm over plans by members of the All Peoples Congress (APC) to compromise officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to whittle down the electoral victory of the Alliance for Democracy by disenfranchising supporters of the party in its stronghold in Saturday's election.
The Peoples' Assembly, a group working in close association with over 25 affiliates groups across the 18 local government areas of Ondo State while raising this alarm in Akure on Sunday disclosed that as concerned citizens of Ondo State, they would not want a situation in which desperate politicians would plunge the State into a cauldron of war by trying to subvert the people's wish.
According to the Secretary of the group, Mr. Kehinde Fayanju, the PA had stumbled on intelligence reports indicating that the APC members in their desperation to rig this election, had mapped out an arrangement where they would compromise the INEC not to supply ballot papers and other sensitive election materials to areas where the AD is seen to be strong on time on the election day.
"This delay, which is being hatched by top echelon of the APC, according to our source, is to ensure that voters in these areas would be surreptitiously disenfranchised by delaying voting under the guise of late arrival of election materials. By this, many eligible voter would have been discouraged and some may go back home, while many would not be able to participate in the exercise owing to time factor as the compromised INEC officials would be instructed not to extend to accommodate the delay.
"We are calling on top officials of the INEC to warn their officers especially those that would be on the field not to be bought over the desperate politicians as the people of Ondo are would not suffer fools gladly; they will resist any attempt to subvert their popular wishes as evident in the 1983 episode in the State.
"While the Peoples' Assembly is not a partisan group, but as stakeholders in Ondo State and Nigeria as a whole, our desire is that whoever wins should be allowed to enjoy his victory as such victory is the outcome of the popular choice of the electorate and should not be denied.
The Electoral Commission, as unbiased umpire, must do its job satisfactorily and must not be seen to be taking sides with anybody, especially the ruling Party. Rigging of election has become anachronistic, reprehensible, odious and retrogressive in this clime and nobody must be allowed to subvert the wish of the people, otherwise such a person is courting trouble," the group warned.
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