Ekiti decides: Drama at polling unit as ADC candidate, Bejide alleges assault, vote-buying . Allegations untrue, APC Chieftain Araoye
Ekiti decides: Drama at polling unit as ADC candidate, Bejide alleges assault, vote-buying
. Allegations untrue, APC Chieftain Araoye
Allegations of vote-buying and assault marred the Ekiti State local government election on Saturday as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship candidate, Dare Bejide, accused leaders of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of compromising the electoral process at his polling unit in Ilawe-Ekiti.
Bejide, who cast his vote at Polling Unit 004, Ward 2, in Ekiti South-West Local Government Area, told journalists that officials of the All Progressives Congress (APC) openly distributed cash to voters at the polling centre, and that attempts to challenge the practice resulted in a confrontation.
According to him, the alleged vote-buying was carried out by prominent APC leaders, including the Chairman of Ekiti South-West Local Government, Richard Apolola, and other party chieftains.
“The process has been monetised. The APC brought money here in a large sack and started distributing it.
“I complained, but there was nobody to stop them. There was no real election here,” Bejide alleged.
The ADC candidate further claimed that he was physically shoved by APC chieftain, Makinde Araoye, after objecting to the alleged distribution of money at the polling unit.
“They pushed me and I almost fell down,” he alleged, adding that the incident occurred when he insisted that vote-buying should not be allowed at the polling centre.
Bejide also alleged that his driver was assaulted while trying to intervene during the altercation.
According to him, the driver challenged those involved not to harass him, prompting an attack that left him injured.
“We tried to stop them and they hit my driver on the head with the butt of a gun.
He was bleeding profusely and has been taken to the hospital. He was only trying to prevent them from harassing me at my polling unit,” he claimed.
The ADC candidate accused security personnel at the polling centre of failing to act despite his complaints.
“I reported the matter to the police officers on duty, but they said they had no capacity to intervene.
When another policeman arrived, he asked me for photographic evidence of the money distribution,” he stated.
Describing the development as embarrassing and contrary to democratic principles, Bejide said: “We came here expecting a peaceful election.
“Bringing money directly to the voting centre is ridiculous and embarrassing.”
However, Araoye dismissed the allegations, insisting that the election process across Ekiti South-West had been peaceful, orderly and more efficient than previous exercises.
“The electoral process has been very peaceful in Ekiti State.
The exercise is far better than what we witnessed four years ago.
“Voters are spending far less time casting their ballots, and people have come out peacefully to exercise their franchise,” he said.
Responding to allegations that he assaulted the ADC candidate, Araoye denied any wrongdoing and claimed that Bejide initiated the confrontation.
“People who know me know that I am a man of peace.
“As an APC leader, it is part of my responsibility to move around polling units within my ward to monitor the conduct of the election.
“When I got to his polling unit, I greeted him respectfully.
“As I was about to leave, he started pushing me and said I could not enter the unit because it was his ward.
“There is no electoral law preventing me from moving around within my ward,” he said.
Araoye maintained that any physical contact that occurred was purely in self-defence.
“He touched me first and, by doing so, broke the law. I could have called the police to arrest him.
” In self-defence, I had to regain my balance and put my hands on him.
“That was what happened,” he said.
As of the time of filing this report, neither the police nor the electoral authorities had issued an official statement on the incident.
