By Daniel Kanu
Ahead of Saturday’s House of Representatives bye-election in Irepodun-Isin-Oke-Ero-Ekiti Federal Constituency of Kwara State, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday claimed it had bust agents of the Buhari Presidency as they allegedly smuggled in sacks of Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) sensitive materials to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
TheNiche could not verify the allegation independently but the PDP said the alleged action of the ruling party was in furtherance of “their on-going plot to rig the election.”
A statement by the PDP national publicity secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, said, “Agents of the Presidency and those of INEC were caught in a police helicopter, which landed at St. Paul’s Primary School, Omu Aran, as they delivered bags of INEC’s sensitive materials into a vehicle belonging to APC’s candidate, Abdulraheen Tunji Ajuloopin.
“The PDP has full details of the INEC agents and our members are monitoring the movement of the materials in this provocative act.
“The PDP charges INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to immediately give account of all the sensitive materials for the election as the people of Kwara State insist on the release of all materials only in the full glare of stakeholders.”
The opposition party further claimed that the alleged act of delivering the sensitive materials to persons contesting the poll had triggered tension in the area and called on Nigerians to hold INEC, the police, the Buhari Presidency and APC responsible, should there be any breakdown of law and order in the area before, during and after the election.
Efforts to reach both INEC and the presidency to react were unsuccessful.
