The Ondo State chapter of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) has strongly rejected the results of the recent governorship election held on Saturday, describing it as a “show of shame.” The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the incumbent governor and candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, as the winner with a total of 366,781 votes, defeating other candidates.
Allegations of Intimidation and Irregularities
During a press briefing on Monday in Akure, the SDP Chairman, Mr. Gbenga Akinbuli, criticized the election process, alleging widespread harassment and intimidation of SDP agents. He also claimed that numerous voters were prevented from exercising their rights, and vote buying was rampant across polling units.
“Our agents arrived at polling units as early as 7 a.m., but they were intimidated and forced out. Voters were not allowed to come out. How can you register over two million voters and then claim less than 600,000 voted? It’s a disgrace to the government of the day,” Akinbuli stated. He demanded the immediate cancellation of the election results and revealed that the party’s legal team was already preparing to challenge the outcome.
Akinbuli expressed disbelief over the low vote count for SDP, stating, “If one agent casts a vote at every polling unit, we should record nothing less than 2,000 votes. How come the results being sent to us reflect such low scores for our party? We reject it outright.”
SDP Candidate Alleges Pre-Written Results
The SDP governorship candidate, Mr. Bamidele Akingboye, who secured 438 votes according to INEC, also denounced the election process, citing numerous irregularities and malpractices. He alleged that political thugs harassed and intimidated SDP members, preventing voters from freely supporting the party.
“In my unit in Okitipupa, Ward 2, Unit 10, they openly engaged in vote buying. I told them that, as a person of integrity, I would not participate in any unlawful acts. This election was marred with irregularities,” Akingboye said.
He further claimed that the results were pre-written, highlighting incidents captured in trending online videos, including an elderly woman admitting to accepting money in exchange for her vote. “This is unacceptable,” he asserted.
Calls for Cancellation and Declaration of Victory
While the SDP chairman demanded the outright cancellation of the election, Akingboye declared himself the rightful winner, asserting that voters intended to support him but were thwarted by intimidation and thuggery. “Our party will not condone illegality. INEC must declare me as the winner of this election,” he said.
Next Steps
The SDP has vowed to pursue legal action to contest the results, signaling a potentially lengthy dispute over the governorship election. Both the party leadership and its candidate remain resolute in challenging what they describe as an undemocratic and fraudulent process.
