Lagos State’s African Action Congress (AAC) chairman, Ayoyinka Oni, has charged that the All Progressives Congress (APC) rigged the state’s just-concluded local elections.
According to LAD REPORTING, the APC claimed a landslide victory in the July 12 elections, taking all 20 local government chairmanships, all 37 LCDA (Local Council Development Area) chairmanship seats, and all 375 councillorship seats. Only one councilor seat was gained by the People’s Democratic Party, or PDP.
During an assessment of the controversial voting process that included political party leaders, analysts, security officials, and other stakeholders, Oni made the accusations on a News Central Television show called Inside Lagos Politics: The Fallout of the Local Government Elections.
Oni called the APC a “ruining party” instead of a ruling party in his remarks.
He declared, “In Lagos, we have a ruining party, not a ruling party.”
He called for the immediate dismissal of the Chairman of the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission, or LASIEC, and said that election-duty police officers were “sleeping and collecting bribes.”
Nelson Ekujumi, a political analyst and civil society advocate, responded to the accusations by advising opposition parties to become acquainted with the electoral process and constitutional provisions. In order to counter false information and promote active engagement in Nigeria’s democratic system, he emphasized the need for improved civic education.
Benjamin Hundeyin, a spokesman for the Lagos State Police Command, defended the actions of security guards during the voting process, calling it “90 percent successful.”
Although acknowledging that there were sporadic instances of misconduct, he insisted that these problems were promptly resolved.
READ MORE: LAD REPORTING
