One of the governorship aspirants in the Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adebayo Adelabu, has raised concerns over alleged irregularities during the party’s governorship primary election held across the state.
Speaking with journalists after voting at Ward 9, Ibadan South-East Local Government Area, Adelabu described the exercise in his ward as peaceful, transparent and credible, noting that he enjoyed overwhelming support from party members in the area.
According to him, out of about 437 registered party members in the ward, over 430 voted in his favour.
“This is my ancestral home and my natural ward. I am satisfied with what we witnessed here today. The process was peaceful, free and fair without any violence or intimidation,” he said.
However, the APC chieftain alleged that reports from several wards across the state indicated cases of electoral misconduct, intimidation and manipulation of results.
Adelabu claimed that in some wards, elections were allegedly conducted before the officially scheduled time, while in others, party members were prevented from voting through intimidation and violence.
“In some places, elections did not even take place, yet results were allegedly written and recorded. This is not good for our democracy and something must be done about it,” he stated.
The former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria further alleged that some party executives connived with certain aspirants to impose what he described as “consensus candidates” despite the directive from the party’s national leadership for a free and transparent direct primary election.
There was nothing like consensus candidates. Eleven aspirants purchased forms and were cleared for the race. Every aspirant should have been given a level playing ground,” Adelabu added.
He disclosed that petitions would be submitted to the appropriate authorities over the alleged irregularities across the five geopolitical zones of Oyo State, including Ibadan, Oke-Ogun, Ogbomosho, Ibarapa and Oyo.
Adelabu also warned against what he described as attempts to impose an unpopular candidate on the party through manipulated results.
“We will resist fake results and any form of falsehood capable of imposing an unpopular candidate on the party,” he said.
Despite his reservations, Adelabu expressed optimism that justice would prevail at the end of the process.
