Speak up on Amosun’s election cash claims, PDP tells Buhari

Following claims allegedly made by Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State on how he sourced money to influence the last Ondo State gubernatorial election, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to speak up on the issue.

The opposition party expressed worries in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Prince Dayo Adeyeye that there were revelations on how the All Progressives Congress (APC) allegedly bought votes just as Ibikunle outlined his plans for senatorial seats in 2019 as a prelude to becoming senate president.

The statement said: “We have been reliably informed of the arrogance and latitude displayed by the Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun in which he revealed how his party, the All Progressive Congress (APC) manipulated votes in the November 26, 2016 Ondo State gubernatorial election.

“Nigerians will recall that the Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle was caught on tape during a meeting with the Ogun State House of Assembly and National Assembly members from the state about two weeks ago making shocking revelations of how the APC spent N1,000,000 in each polling unit during the just concluded gubernatorial election in Ondo State.”

The former ruling party noted that the revelations were a vindication of its position that security agencies had failed in their mandate to maintain law and order during elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had abandoned its responsibility to conduct free, fair, unbiased and credible electoral processes in the country; and the APC government that should ensure constitutional compliance towards the conduct of credible elections especially, being a government that is “constantly whining on issue of ‘corruption’ as if it cares.”

PDP added: “The revelations by Governor Amosun are not surprising to us, but we are alarmed given that the disclosure speaks volumes of the present state of our electoral systems and it worries us on the impending tragedy of future elections in the country under the APC’s watch; a situation where democratic tenets on unhindered citizen participation, the rule of law, majority rule and performance of candidate and party will no longer determine electoral successes but by survival of the fittest through cruel, careless and brazen votes buying, intimidation and other kinds of manipulation at the polling units. Very sad!

“The governor equally revealed among other things, his ambition to become the next Senate President by replicating the Ondo State style of election rigging in Ogun State and his senatorial district in particular.

“To buttress, these were his words ‘…We were just laughing at the likes of Asiwaju when they budgeted N100,000 per polling unit. Unknowingly to them, we brought in N1,000,000 per polling unit. I got the money out of Abuja and we will repeat same in Ogun come 2019.’

“The governor further declared thus, ‘…I am concerned about just seven local governments. The five in Ogun Central, Sagamu and Ado Odo Ota. I am prepared to spend N1 billion in Sagamu, N1 billion in Ado Odo Ota, then N2 billion in Ogun Central. No matter what we do, that drug boy, Buruji will beat us in some part of Ogun East, while that fool from Lagos will control the other four local governments in Ogun West.’

“This is barbaric, careless, inhuman and grossly undemocratic for Governor Amosun like most APC governors, are prepared to spend the hard earned resources of their states to win elections at-all-costs but are not concerned with the backlog of salaries and pensions of workers and retirees in their respective states or investing in infrastructural development that will better the lives of their people.

“The worst is that these huge amounts of money the Governor boasted of spending in Ondo State and to spend in Ogun State to manipulate votes and avert the will of Ogun people are evidently coming from ‘Mr. Integrity’ at Abuja’s Aso Villa, President Buhari.

“This is the governor’s confirmation, ‘…I got the money out of Abuja and we will repeat same in Ogun come 2019.’

“For a man currently presiding over a static harsh economy condition in Nigeria that could be best described as comatose economy, the President should respond urgently to this malice against the citizens and its elections.”

The party therefore called on the anti-graft agencies to “stand up in the interest of the citizens who own the sovereign power of government; especially, the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) as a matter of urgency, to arrest this ugly trend.”

It observed that Nigerians and workers in the APC controlled states would want to know how the monies monthly allocated to these states were appropriated.

It also called on the civil society organizations (CSOs), members of the international community and the media not to relent on their efforts at rescuing the hard earned democracy from the APC led government.

“If we do nothing urgently to curb these excesses of executive power, imprudent spending of public funds, and gross incompetence, our democracy will be heading to destruction. A stitch in time saves nine!” PDP declared.