The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in Osun State has demanded a public apology from Governor Ademola Adeleke, Hashim Abioye, State Independent Electoral Commission (OSIEC) chairman, and other cabinet members over the Saturday’s council poll in the state.
The demand follows allegations of widespread irregularities which the party described as “lockdown exercise.”
Adewale Adebayo, chairman of APM in the state, said that there was no election anywhere in the state except in Ede, the hometown of the governor.
Adebayo said that OSIEC insistence to conduct the poll was just to justify spending of the money that had been allocated for the poll, describing the action as fraudulent.
His words: “What we experienced in Osun State today (Saturday) is not election but lockdown because people refused to participate in the illegal poll except in Ede town where only few members of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) voted in some polling units of top political appointees of the governor.
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“Our party is vindicated with this exercise of our earlier apprehension that OSIEC can never conduct any meaningful election since its chairman, Hashim Abioye is a card-carrying member of PDP and serves Adeleke as Special Adviser Legal Matters and served as PDP caretaker Secretary.
“Osun State Government through OSIEC only wasted billions of Naira on shadow election. Our members in Irewole, Isokan, Boripe, Ifelodun, Olorunda, Egbedore, Irepodun and Orolu amongst other places confirmed that elections were not held.
“In fact in Ede that they held illegal election, they claimed they concluded voting by 8:30am, the same Ede that voted till 9PM during the governorship election in 2022.”
He demanded that “Adeleke, Abioye and other members of the cabinets who had runaway from the state should make statewide broadcast to apologise to the resident for imposing lockdown on them.”
In his reaction, Teslim Igbalaye, secretary to the State Government, denied the claim that OSIEC held a council election.
He said: “there was massive turnout of voters. I voted in Osogbo Ward 7, Unit 7, the turnout was massive. I believe that people have confidence in OSIEC and Osun State Government.”
