The Ogun state chapter of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, have raised alarm over alleged deployment of fake uniformed men of the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Police Force and fake members of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC for the Saturday, February 23rd Presidential and National Assembly polls in the state.
In a statement made available to news men in Abeokuta Friday morning, the party’s state publicity secretary, Mr. Abiola Odutola alleged that the APC administration in Ogun State have perfected plans to compromise the elections through fake security officers and poll officials.
The party also noted that these same persons have connived with some unscrupulous elements of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to ensure the use of fake youth corps members for the elections in certain polling booths across the state.
According to Odutola, “There are agents of the APC and her splinter party, APM who have been mobilized and equipped to disguise as army officers with falsely painted vehicles to impersonate as soldiers and police officers; with the aim of executing rigging plans expecially during transportation of collated ballots from one point to another.
“We also have unassailable information at our disposal that APC and APM party members have been employed to disguise as NYSC members and work with some INEC officials to technically distort the voting processes at some selected polling units across the state”.
The ADC in the statement also raised the issue of missing ballot papers, citing the example of Imeko-Afon local government where a total of 6,053 House of Reps ballot papers are missing as at Friday morning.
The party said this ugly development has caused chaos in areas where the APC and her baby party, APM perceived they are not popular.
The party also alerted of a prominent member of National Union of Road and Transport workers, NURTW loyal to Governor Ibikunle Amosun who has been given the task of providing vehicles for the movement of collated results across the state; with the intention to tamper with results.
“We hope the Nigeria Army, Police Force and the DSS will all live above partisan politics and ensure due process takes place at the polls tomorrow. It is so repulsive that a prominent, yet notorious member of the NURTW who is a close ally of the governor has been providing INEC with vehicles in the last 72 hours” Odutola enthused.
“Thugs are been mobilized into town, the peace of Abeokuta is been threatened as notorious armed men are becoming prevalent even within the GRA private residence of the governor”.
The statement however expressed that ADC is ready for the polls, calling on INEC to do all within its capacity to detect unscrupulous elements among its officials, detect these fake corps members while opting for independent transport sources for moving it’s materials.
The ADC also urged the Army and Police high command to watch out for every uniformed men on the street of Ogun State tomorrow to ascertain their genuineness.