The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of double standard in the forthcoming supplementary elections.
Specifically, the party accused the electoral body of using Margin of Lead Principle in declaring elections inconclusive in states where it is leading.
Margin of Lead Principle is a provision in INEC Guideline and Regulations for Conduct of Elections, which empower the Commission to declare polls inconclusive when the cancelled votes exceed the margin between the leading candidate and his closest contender.
A statement by Kola Ologbondiyan, PDP National Publicity Secretary, on Thursday, expressed optimism that the party would win all the six governorship supplementary elections billed for March 23.
It would be recalled that the Commission had declared the governorship elections in Benue, Sokoto, Kano, Bauchi, Plateau and Adamawa inconclusive and fixed the supplementary elections for March 23.
The statement revealed that after an emergency meeting of the PDP National Working Committee on Thursday, where it reviewed states where elections were declared inconclusive, it came to the conclusion that the INEC had have two sets of rules in the same election for the various political parties.
The statement used the Ogun State governorship where the APC candidate, Dapo Abiodun, was declared winner despite having lower margin of lead over cancelled votes.
“More worrisome is the resolution which arose from a meeting between some governors of the APC and President Muhammadu Buhari, where the PDP has been informed that a decision was taken to seize Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Plateau, Sokoto and Kano states in the March 23, scheduled supplementary election.
“It is instructive to state that the Buhari Presidency has not denied this strong allegation of rigging plans, thus strengthening the reality that the APC is always prepared to benefit from electoral fraud.
“The PDP wishes to state that after our deliberation and interface with stakeholders from the various states where governorship supplementary elections have been scheduled to hold, the party mandates all our members to resist any attempt by anybody to tamper with the will of the people in their states.
“On no account must Nigerians allow a culture of impunity, where those who failed in any elections will compromise our electoral arbiter and force themselves on the people.
“Furthermore, the PDP expresses worry over the damage done to the image of the military by its hierarchy by allowing itself to be used by the APC.
“It is despicable that our military has been dragged into politics to an extent where soldiers now join issues with politicians in the media and conduct its affairs as if it has become a political party. This partisan involvement of our armed forces, to say the least, has impaired the confidence Nigerians have on the institution of the military”.
OWEDE AGBAJILEKE, Abuja
