The Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State has sounded a note of warning to the Nigerian Army General Officer Commanding (GOC) 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, Major General Obinna Ajunwa, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to call their personnel to order over their involvement in the ongoing scheme to change the polling unit results at the collation centres across the state.
The party, in a statement on Saturday by party spokesman Akinloye Bankole, alleged the sudden deployment of military officers to aides of the Governor and APC Chieftains who have been moving from one collation centre to the other, sending other party agents away and changing the results already announced at the polling units.
“The ongoing connivance of the Nigerian Army, INEC and Governor of Ogun State to change the legitimate results from the polling units at the collation centres is an invitation to the anarchy that would be confronted appropriately,” Mr Bankole said. “We will not standby and allow a mandate given by the people to be stolen by those who should protect the fairness of the poll.
“We are hereby calling on the Department of the State Security Services to disarm these operatives and warn the GOC to call his troop deployed for Afolabi at Oke Ilewo to pull back immediately,” he added. “We want peace but it will never be at the altar of illegality.”
A spokesman for APC in the state did not immediately return a request seeking comment, but the party has repeatedly denied any allegations of election manipulation. Instead, the party said it’s the PDP and other opposition elements who are trying to rig the election against the will of the state’s residents.
The race today was largely contested by Ladi Adebutu, a former federal lawmaker of the PDP, and Dapo Abiodun, the incumbent governor of the APC. Results are currently being collated across the state and a winner is expected to be officially declared by the electoral office by Sunday.