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Bauchi Senatorial Bye-Election: PDP To Institute Legal Action Against State Government, APC

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Bauchi Senatorial Bye-Election: PDP To Institute Legal Action Against State Government, APC

Bauchi Senatorial Bye-Election: PDP To Institute Legal Action Against State Government, APC

From Yahaya Audu, Bauchi

The Chairman of The Bauchi State chapter Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Alhaji Hamza Akuyam has vowed to institute a legal action against the Bauchi state government and All Progressive Congress (APC) for allegedly rigging the just concluded Bauchi South Senatorial by-election.

Akuyam made the statement while addressing a press conference at the PDP secretariat in Bauch.‎

 Alhaji Hamza Akuyam who was flanked by the party flag bearer Ladan Saliu described the election as the worst in the history of democracy election in the country.

It was reports that the Independent National Electoral Commission declared APC candidate, Lawal Yahaya Gumau as the winner of last Saturday Senatorial  bye-election having pooled total votes of 119,489 to defeat the PDP candidate Ladan Saliu who pooled 50,256. 

According to PDP Chairman “The win-at-all cost and by all means attitude of the Bauchi state government poses a clear and present danger of our democracy. It is unacceptable and can be accepted only at our own peril. The party will institute a legal action through the establishment mechanism of the law”.

Akuyam also accused officials of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies for conniving with the state government to rig the election saying “it is regrettable that the state office of INEC became a theater of Electoral malpractice and manipulation where figures were scandalous re-jigged to favor APC. This was done without any consideration for voters who stood in cues for long, some traveled miles and braved extreme conditions only for officials to disenfranchise them with a stroke of the pen, this is unacceptable.

According to him, the state government perfected the election rigging which was carefully rehearsed and excuted with active connivance of Law Enforcement Agencies and officials of INEC.

He also alleged that vote buying was widespread and conducted in the open noting “the APC-Led government in the state openly lured citizens with cash for their votes, which were sold for anything between 100, 200, 500, 1,000 and in some cases 5000 naira per vote. Simply put thee ballot paper became the most song he-after commodity in the senatorial zone. This shameless act was responsible for the low-turnout of voters, especially women and youth refused to vote until they get paid or settled. In some voting centers security officials chased away voters and agents even before voting process and counting were conducted”.

Akuyam accused police for firing gunshots and roads blockage “taking away a ballot box with agents thereby disenfranchising citizens from casting their votes”

On cancellation of votes, Akuyam lamented over the cancellation of 80,000 votes in an election where only256,763 votes were cast saying “we condemn this charade in strongest terms because it was a hatchet job by INEC officials and Governor MA Abubakar Governemnt to deny PDP victory”,

PDP also alleged that card readers were not used in the larger part of Toro Local Government adding that this explains the so called massive number of bites secured by the APC compared to Bauchi which has more centers and registerd voters.

“The conduct of our law Enforcement   Agency and Security Services in this whole saga was to say the least, regrettable, Police vehicles were used in some rural areas of Alkaleri Local government to block roads and deny citizens free movement while officials of the state were given free access to those areas to purchase bites for APC,” he said.

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