Twenty-four hours have elapsed since the conclusion of the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election for the Ondo North Senatorial District, yet the electoral committee has conspicuously failed to collate and release the results. The election held yesterday has been engulfed by alarming irregularities and procedural breaches, particularly in the Akoko axis, raising serious questions about the integrity of the exercise and the adherence of the party to democratic principles.
Eyewitness accounts and credible sources reveal that loyalists of the sitting Governor, led by Rt. Hon. Victor Olabimtan allegedly seized score sheets and absconded with them, purportedly to manipulate outcomes in favour of the Governor’s anointed candidate, a contender who, notably, was decisively defeated in his own ward during the on-field poll. This brazen conduct has sent tremors of apprehension across the political landscape of the district.
The overwhelming victory of Chief Alex Oluremi Ajipe at the grassroots has according to observers, generated palpable anxiety among the orchestrators of the purported subterfuge. Chief Ajipe’s commanding performance juxtaposed against the waning popularity of the Governor’s preferred candidate, appears to have catalysed a frantic attempt to subvert the democratic will of the electorate. Reports indicate that both electoral officers and returning officers were coerced into absconding, effectively paralysing the process of transparent result collation.
Meanwhile, the people of Owo have reportedly risen in uncommon unity and resolve against any attempt to impose electoral manipulation upon the district. From the elderly to the youth, there is a growing consensus within the ancient kingdom that the sanctity of the ballot must be protected at all costs. Determined to resist what many have described as a calculated assault on democratic integrity, indigenes of Owo have resolved to remain steadfastly and vigilantly stationed at the collation centre in Owo until the authentic results are duly collated and announced.
The atmosphere at the collation centre has consequently assumed the character of a civic resistance, as party faithful and concerned stakeholders maintain a firm presence to ensure that no act of manipulation, intimidation or unlawful alteration of results is permitted to stand. The people insist that the mandate freely given by delegates across the senatorial district cannot and must not be subverted through clandestine political machinations.
The unfolding events, if left unchecked, portend a grave breach of electoral norms and the principles of internal party democracy, undermining the very foundation upon which the APC projects its credibility. The allegations of score-sheet tampering, coercion of electoral officers and orchestrated manipulation constitute prima facie evidence of electoral malpractice, inviting scrutiny from both legal and political oversight bodies.
As the district and indeed the nation watches, the APC leadership is called upon to act with immediacy, ensuring that the will of the party members in Ondo North is neither truncated nor rendered null by the machinations of political expediency. The eyes of the public and indeed the international community remain fixed upon Ondo State, awaiting accountability, transparency and an unequivocal affirmation of democratic propriety.
The political theatre of Ondo North now stands at a critical juncture; either the APC reasserts its commitment to lawful, transparent and credible primaries or it risks further erosion of public trust with consequences that may reverberate far beyond the confines of the state.
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