Kaduna: APC tampers with ballot documents in INEC custody, PDP alleges

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has accused the Kaduna state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) of complicity in a video where some staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were allegedly caught tampering with some ballot documents in the custody of the electoral body.

In a statement issued by Kaduna state PDP secretary of the party, Hon. Ibrahim Aliyu Wusono, said the hastily written statement by the state chapter of APC over the viral video without being accused was suspicious and a preemptive attempt to deflect attention from possible culpability by the APC.

PDP in a statement said: “The Kaduna State PDP is amused to see a hastily written statement by the Kaduna State APC absolving itself of complicity in a video where some INEC staff were allegedly caught tampering with some ballot documents.

“The APC quickly came out to speak about the incident even though no one has yet accused the party. Nothing exemplifies a guilt-ridden mindset seeking to run from its shadow like what the APC sought to achieve with its statement”

The statement narrated:” This is why the APC reacted: On the afternoon of Saturday, 8th July 2023, a member of our party who was the collation/returning officer of the PDP in the 2023 presidential and governorship elections, along with some lawyers, was at the premises of the Kaduna State office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to get Certified True Copies (CTC) of some documents that the election petition Tribunal had subpoenaed INEC to produce”

“As expected, they were at the INEC office to inspect the document that INEC had sorted out. What usually happens is that once INEC presents copies of the document to us, we
write it down in the schedule of documents list that we have for the tribunal”

PDP further said:” On that day, our delegation went to their office and saw some of their staff tampering with some documents from Kaduna South LGA. When they were questioned, they couldn’t explain but took some of the documents and ran away leaving some behind. We immediately called their superior officer with whom we were working and reported what we had seen. The person came and picked up the remaining documents after we made a video of them”

“But the PDP in Kaduna State was surprised to see a statement from the APC immediately after the video got out, even trying to drag the election tribunal into it when the video our person made didn’t mention the tribunal nor the APC. We interpreted it as a preemptive attempt to deflect attention from possible culpability by the APC”

“This is not the first time the APC has attempted to scuttle our attempt to regain our mandate since we went to court. It would be recalled that even for the APC to receive the court summons became a task because they kept avoiding it. The court had to make a ruling on substituted service.

“The PDP knows it won the gubernatorial election in Kaduna State and is bent on reclaiming its mandate despite all the manipulations that the APC keeps deploying” the statement claimed.

Reacting, Kaduna State APC secretary, Yahaya Pate, had in a statement dismissed the PDP’s allegation and video, alleging it was an attempt to mislead the Tribunal and the public.