Two days before the governorship and state assembly elections, candidates and political parties, yesterday, traded accusations over plots to unleash violence and rig the exercise.
The accusations and counter-accusations were made as the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, commenced the distribution of election materials across the 774 local councils of the country.
Distributing the election materials to the 16 LGAs of Ekiti State, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Professor Ayobami Salami, assured citizens of the state of free, fair and credible elections on Saturday.
“INEC is prepared, we are more prepared than we were during the Presidential election and we would put everything in place to ensure a free, fair, credible and laudable election.”
Across the states, the other RECs spoke in like manner.
APC, LP, PDP, SDP fight dirty in Lagos
In Lagos, the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC; Peoples Democratic Party, PDP; Labour Party, LP; and Social Democratic Party, SDP, were at one another’s jugular over alleged plots rig the elections.
Cartels in Lagos against me — PDP candidate
The PDP Governorship Candidate, Olajide Adediran, who presented his wife, Mariam, who arrived from the United States of America to stakeholders at his Liberty House campaign office, exposed moves by cartels and godfathers in PDP and APC to work against his victory.
Jandor, however, expressed confidence to triumph at the end of the day, against all odds, saying “the battle is of God and not of Jandor or of any godfather.”
Addressing the crowd, mainly women leaders and members of PDP across 20 Local Government Areas of the state, he said he was aware of some godfathers in PDP, who had decided to ensure his defeat at the Saturday polls by endorsing and working for Labour Party candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, as well as APC, apparently referring to PDP chieftain, Bode George and President-elect, Bola Tinubu.
He said: “We are all aware of the whirlwind in the polity towards this governorship polls in Lagos as a result of activities of some godfathers in PDP and APC, who are bent on subverting the wishes of the majority.
“The leaders have been beating the drums of war for the last few weeks with provocative statements, harassment and propaganda. But am sure all these will soon subside. God has exposed them as they are beating the drums of war.
“Because I resisted the move by a godfather in PDP to pick Rhodes-Vivour as my deputy, they lured him (Rhodes-Vivour) to Labour Party to confront us and stop our dream but this will definitely fail. We are resolute in attaining victory. We have worked hard for it in the last 10 years. The new wave of LP will not stop us.”
Also, the PDP in Alimosho LGA raised an alarm over what it termed attempts by the APC to manipulate the elections against the wish of the majority in the state.
Making the allegation, PDP Chairman of Alimosho LGA, Shodiya Isiaka, at a media briefing at the party’s secretariat in Alimosho called on the umpire INEC to be proactive and ensure free, fair and credible exercise.
I’m worried about intimidation, and harassment of voters — Carew, SDP assembly candidate
Speaking on the issue, Mr Lanre Carew, the Kosofe Constituency 1 Lagos House of Assembly candidate of the SDP, said: “I am concerned about intimidation and harassment. We are already seeing it in APC. They are harassing people, threatening them for liking another person. They go about threatening my supporters. They threaten them with their jobs and harass them where they live. They go as far as using traditional rulers to harass people who stay in some areas. They threaten them to vote for a particular party. We hear rumors that they want to cause mayhem because of how the ‘Obi wave’ swept everywhere. The truth is that we are not scared.”
Daniel, LP Ajeromi-Ifelodun candidate concurs
Also, Mr. Segun Daniel, the LP House of Assembly candidate for Ifelodun Ajeromi Constituency 1, Lagos, alleged that his life and that of LP supporters and agents were being threatened by some groups of thugs who he alleged had been intimidated and threatening that nobody should come out to vote for LP or any other party except for the APC
Daniel, a lawyer, said: “Shocking among them are some Baales using microphones and megaphones to lay curses on people that will ever vote for Labour Party or any other party except the APC.
The Baales threatened to cause serious harm to anybody especially those that will not vote for APC candidates in the forthcoming Saturday election.”
APC kicks as Lagos indigenes endorse Rhodes-Vivour
Meanwhile, prominent indigenes of Lagos State under the auspices of Eko Forum, yesterday, endorsed the LP Governorship Candidate, Mr Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who they described as a proper son of the soil.
In a statement by its Chairman and General Secretary, Alhaji Ismaila Williams and Elder Olawale Ogundimu respectively, the forum said the decision to back Rhodes-Vivour was taken at the end of an extraordinary meeting on Sunday.
The statement reads: “Members of the Eko Forum from all the 20 local governments, as well as all the 37 local council development areas, met on Sunday in Lagos.
“Members took the decision to support Arc Rhodes-Vivour after carefully appraising the credentials of all other candidates that have put themselves forward to be elected.
“On behalf of the members of our Forum, we want to disabuse the minds of unsuspecting residents that the Igbo ethnic nationality will take over Lagos if Rhodes-Vivour wins.
“Igbo have been living with us in Lagos from time immemorial peacefully; we have intermarried and done a lot of things together for a long time. They never dragged the ownership of our land with us since and why will they do that now?
“This is cheap propaganda which we appeal to our people not to fall for.”
Their endorsements stand for nothing —Lagos APC
However, the Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mr Seye Oladejo, said the party will not be distracted noting that the endorsement of Rhodes-Vivour will not stand.
Oladejo said: “Anybody can claim the indigeneship of Lagos State at a time like this. As you know, we are in the peak of elections and it is always convenient to play up any story but we are not distracted by any of that.
“Most of the endorsements they are doing stand for nothing and I can assure you that on Saturday, Governor Sanwo-Olu will be re-elected. His works in the last four years will speak for him and Lagosians sincerely appreciate that. They will re-elect him, there is no doubt about that.”
Jandor not in the race —APC
Also dismissing the allegations of rigging by the PDP candidate and others against the APC said Adediran is not in the race.
“My sympathy goes to the young man because he worked so hard but he fell like a pack of cards some days to the election. He is not even in the race. To stay relevant, he wants to cook up stories by moonlight as his excuse. I think that is his strategy. He is looking for an excuse for his imminent loss.”
Credit: Punnch