The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has denied allegations of vote-buying levelled against it by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Prof. Kolapo Olusola (Eleka).
The party said it was in possession of documentary and electronic evidence to prove that Governor Ayo Fayose, Olusola and the PDP purchased votes from the electorate to influence the outcome of last Saturday’s governorship poll.
The election was won by the APC flag bearer, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, who has since been declared the governor-elect by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In a statement yesterday in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, by its Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, APC condemned vote-buying, saying such practice should be discouraged to allow democracy grow.
The party also urged media houses to hear all parties involved in an election, saying selective treatment of issues is a denial of fair hearing for correct public judgment.
A statement by the party’s State Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, praised the electorate for voting massively for Fayemi.
It noted that the gesture would ginger Fayemi to continue with his pro-people programmes to lift Ekiti people out of poverty.
APC denied the allegation that it engaged in vote-buying during the election.
The party said it did not join the despicable act of inducement to con the people of Ekiti.
“Fayose and Eleka are known for throwing tokens at our people from the resources of the state, using the instrument of government. They believe that is what their loyalty is worth and they never had any plan to lift them beyond the poverty level.
“The return of Fayemi as governor of Ekiti State is a signal that God still answers the prayers of his people whenever they are under torture.
“The victory signals an end to poverty, squalor and oppressive tendencies of a mindless government that shamelessly refused to pay workers their dues, yet could afford to credit the accounts of voters and some sections of workers with amounts ranging from N3,000 to N100,000, just to curry their voting favours.”
APC accused some media houses of penchant for unfair selection of party executives to speak on pertinent matters of public interest.
It added: “We take exception to Channels penchant for inviting PDP officials for media engagements while it calls just members of APC to address matters that would have been best handled by party officials.
“This is not fair to our party because there are issues that are better handled by party officials instead of just members.”
The statement stressed that APC never got itself involved in vote-buying but gave some stipends to its agents legitimately as honorarium for their services.
It said: “The act of buying votes with the state’s resources and transacting through the accounts of government at a time arrears of salaries are not paid is a serious crime, which Fayose and Eleka have committed and which deserves condemnation by all well-meaning people of the state.