The Social Democratic Party (SDP) and its candidate for governor, Otunba Bamidele Akingboye, have challenged the results of the recently concluded Ondo State gubernatorial election.
The party claimed that vote buying, thuggery, and other irregularities tainted the election, calling the result a slap on democracy.
Gbenga Akinbuli, the state’s SDP chairman, demanded that the poll be immediately canceled during a press conference held in Akure on Monday.
He claimed that political thugs at Ward 10 Unit 19, Ondo West local government, harassed and intimidated voters.
He claimed that at the polling station where he cast his ballot, voters were given offers ranging from N7000 to N10000.
He said: “How come the SDP got zero votes in Ilaje? The thugs chased everybody out of the polling unit. People were scared of coming out to cast their votes.
“Security at the polling units could not do anything. They chased out our agents from the polling unit. We are saying the election was marred by gross malpractices, vote buying, and electoral intimidation.
“We are going to court. We are asking for the cancellation of the election. It was a show of shame. It was buyers and sellers day in Ondo.”
Recalls that Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of the All Progressives Congress, or APC, was proclaimed the election’s victor by the Independent National Electoral Commission, or INEC, on Sunday.
With a total of 366781 votes, Aiyedatiwa defeated Ajayi Agboola, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who received 117845 votes.
