The African Democratic Congress and the Social Democratic Party have accused the Kaduna State chapter of the All Progressives Congress of plotting to undermine the upcoming bye-elections in Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency and the State Constituencies of Sabon Gari and Zaria.
The coalition claimed the APC was “unelectable” and was relying on thuggery, vote-buying, and the compromise of electoral officials to secure victory in the August 16 polls, according to a joint statement issued in Kaduna on Thursday, August 14,
“It is now clear that the APC government intends to disrupt the bye-elections, manipulate the process, and seize victories in polls they cannot win through a fair and transparent contest.
“To execute their plot and ensure all the APC candidates are returned as winners, our coalition has credible intelligence that the APC government in Kaduna State has recruited about 4,000 thugs from within and outside the state to intimidate citizens and opposition officials at polling units and collation centres,” the statement read.
The coalition further alleged that senior officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission had been offered plots of land and other inducements to sway the election outcome.
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According to the statement, each of Kaduna’s 23 local governments was compelled to contribute ₦30 million to an “election sabotage fund,” while ₦4.8 billion was allegedly sourced from Abuja for vote-buying, bribing electoral officers, and compromising security agents.
“These assaults on election integrity are being coordinated at the highest levels of the state government,” the statement added.
The group named a serving commissioner and local government officials as key figures in the alleged plot.
“We have credible information that senior officials in Kudan, Soba, and Zaria local government councils are recruiting thugs to attack our events and disrupt our campaigns.
“As a law-abiding coalition, we are alerting INEC and the security agencies to these unlawful and undemocratic acts by the APC government in Kaduna State, and urging that they be stopped to prevent unpredictable reactions from our supporters and the general public.
“We call on INEC to ensure the neutrality of its officials and demonstrate its commitment to respect the will of voters by removing any compromised personnel from the election process and replacing them with fresh, impartial staff immediately,” the statement concluded.