The Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) has alerted
of alleged fresh plots by the leadership of the
Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) to rig the 2019 general elections in favour
of President Muhammadu Buhari and the All
Progressives Congress (APC).
According to the main opposition party, INEC has
been taking directives from the Buhari Presidency
and the APC on how to manipulate the electoral
process at various levels.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja Monday,
spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan,
accused the electoral body of having collected a
list of people that will serve as electoral officials,
including ad-hoc staff and returning officers at the
polling units, from APC state governors and
candidates, across the federation.
Stating that the directive was handed to INEC by
the Presidency, the PDP claimed to be privy to
how the lists were populated with APC members
and agents of the APC candidates, after clearance
by the APC leaders in various states.
Ologbondiyan said, “The PDP vehemently rejects
this wicked plot by the Buhari Presidency, which
is tailored to ensure institutional manipulation of
the electoral process, including accreditation,
voting and collation of results at the polling units,
which is the base of the elections.
“The PDP holds that by following the directive of
the APC in such dubious rigging scheme, the
INEC Chairman, Prof. Yakubu Mahmood, has
violated section 29 (1) of the Electoral Act (as
amended) and shows that he is in clear deficit of
the required political will to conduct a credible,
free and fair election.
“This is especially in the light of the boasting by
agents of the Buhari Presidency and the APC to
give the INEC chairman what they describe as the
‘Onnoghen treatment, and frame him, if he fails to
comply with their rigging plansâ€.
The PDP demanded of INEC to, within 48 hours,
publish the list of all officials and ad hoc staff
that will play any form of role in the election at
all levels for verification by stakeholders.
The party insisted that any delay or refusal by
INEC to publish the list with 48 hours would be a
clear acceptance that it has been compromised
by the APC and this could lead to a very serious
crisis with very dire consequences, as the PDP
will never allow anybody to rig it out in the
election.
“The PDP wants Prof. Mahmood Yakubu to note
that the fate of our nation lies in his hands. It is
left to him to decide whether he would end as a
national hero or as a villain.
“Furthermore, the PDP calls on the international
community to place the INEC Chairman, Directors
and Commissioners in INEC responsible for this
election on their watch list and proceed to impose
travel ban on them as well as hold them directly
responsible should there be any form of rigging in
the February 16, 2019 Presidential elections.
“Finally, the PDP directs all its members, teeming
supporters and all well-meaning Nigerians across
the nation to get ready to vote out President
Buhari and protect their votes with all the energy
available to them in the defence of our democracy
and freedom as a people.
“If President Buhari believes he is popular, he
should make himself available for a free, fair,
transparent and credible election. Anything short
of this is completely unacceptable to Nigerians.
“This is because Nigerians have already reached a
consensus to vote out the incompetence, hunger,
nepotism, pretense and manifest lies which the
Buhari President truly representsâ€.
source: thenationonlineng.net/pdp-exposes-inecs-rigging-plans/
