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The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Kwara State has rejected
the result of Tuesday’s gubernatorial and state house of assembly elections.
The party, at a press conference on Thursday in Ilorin, announced its rejection
of the electoral process “in its entirety and the outcome of the elections in
the state” and affirmed that it would be heading to the court to challenge the
results.

Addressing the media, the acting chairperson of the party in the
state, Kayode Olawepo, stated that violence would have erupted in the state
“after thousands of youth and women gathered at the family house of our
gubernatorial candidate to seek permission to go on rampage.

“But we pleaded with them to avoid spontaneous reactions and
needless loss of lives that may arise from such protest because the ruling PDP
is known to always cash in on such lawful protests to visit violence on the
people.”

The ACN’s candidate in the election, Dele Belgore, lost the
election to the candidate of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP),
Abdulfatah Ahmed, who was declared the winner by the returning officer of the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Mr Ahmed won the polls by
254,969 votes while Mr Belgore polled 152,580 to come second.

Rule of thumb

Mr Olawepo alleged that PDP thugs in connivance with the police
and some soldiers intimidated the people of Kwara State, including supporters
of their party, during the elections which prevented them from casting their
votes. He also alleged that there were a number of instances where electoral
officials were seen thumb-printing the ballot papers for the PDP just as there
was open distribution of money and gifts to voters on the queue by party agents
while voting was ongoing, contrary to the Electoral Act.

Mr Olawepo further cited cases of inflation of accredited voters
and multiple thumb printing in a number of councils. He also claimed that there
was no accreditation at all in councils like Ojoku and Oyun. “All the INEC
staff did was to put the ink on the hands of the prospective voters and direct
them to go,” he said. “The rest was history as soon as the PDP stalwarts
occupied the polling units where they started thumb printing,” he alleged.
Underage voters were also alleged to have been deployed by the PDP in most
parts of the state.

According to the chairperson, who was accompanied to the press briefing by
Mr Belgore and all the party’s candidates to the state house of assembly,
“There are ample evidence to back up all these claims of electoral malpractices
and brigandage by the PDP which is desperate to perpetuate itself by all means
necessary despite its dismal record of performance in the last eight years.” He
made known his party’s decision to head to the electoral tribunal to challenge
the elections “on the basis of all the evidence we have accumulated, to restore
the mandate of the people.”