Akinwande Soji-Ojo
One of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirants in Ondo State, Olusola Oke (SAN), has said rescheduling the party’s primary election in Okitipupa Local Government Area is an “insult to the sensibilities and religion of the people in the area.”
Oke spoke on Sunday, in a statement signed by Ojo Oyewamide, the spokesperson of his campaign organisation.
Kogi State Governor and chairman of the committee overseeing the APC governorship primary election had on Saturday night announced that voting had been rescheduled in all 13 wards of Okitipupa Local Government Area for Sunday.
He said the election was not held in the local government on Saturday due to the late arrival of materials.
Reacting to the announcement, Oke described the move as “a shameful attempt to give the sham a stamp of credibility.”
He added that the election “did not take place anywhere in the state.”
“This attempt is the purported rescheduling of the so-called primary election in Okitipupa Local Government Area of the state. Our question is, how can a primary election that did not occur anywhere in the state be rescheduled in one of the 18 local government areas?
“We insist that what happened in Ondo State yesterday was a disheartening mockery of democracy. As a result, our party has become a boot of jokes in the hands of the opposition parties and the people of the state,” he said.
Other governorship aspirants have also condemned the conduct of the primary election.
While some have demanded the cancellation of the election, others alleged irregularities in the process.
Despite the criticism and controversies surrounding the primary election, Ododo insisted that the process was transparent.
The primary election was scheduled to take place across 203 wards in the 18 local government areas of the state
