The agents of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) have traded words over allegations of vote buying in the ongoing rerun elections in Kaduna State.
Kaduna is one of the 26 states where the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is conducting bye and re-run elections.
At the 009 polling unit in Barnawa, Kaduna South Local Government Area, the PDP agent, Victoria Koko, accused the ruling APC of engaging in vote buying.
She alleged that the ruling party induced voters with money ranging from N10,000 to N15,000, a situation she says is not nice for a healthy democracy.
“As you can see now in Barnawa, what is happening is vote buying. Vote buying (of) N10,000 (and) N15,000 which is not done. They are not doing the vote properly, all they know is vote buying” she said.
When asked of those indulging in the act, Koko pointed an accusing finger at the ruling APC.
To buttress her point, she said: “I can show you them now. You can just look around and see that the turnout is much. If it is not vote buying, you cannot see anybody.”
‘Govt Should Do Something’
Worried by the situation, the PDP agent asked the government to urgently tackle the menace of vote buying.
She specifically called on the state government to ensure that people are freely given the choice to vote during the bye-election.
“We want the government to do something about it. They should do justice, they should know what they are doing.
“This is what we call bye-election, people want to vote. You can see N15,000 for this condition. If you give someone N15,000, they will come and vote APC,” Koko stated.
No Money
But the APC’s agent, Aminu Mohammed, dismissed the allegation of vote buying, describing it as a lamentation of a sinking party.
He said the election is going on smoothly, accusing the PDP of merely trying to weep up sentiments due to the imminent defeat staring the opposition party in the face.
“It is not so because if you look at the atmosphere, all the people here came out to vote for the APC. We didn’t give anyone money,” he said.
“They are here to cast their vote, this is the franchise of their own choice. Maybe you can ask them (PDP) if they are the ones giving people money. All the time, PDP used to criticise people. I am an agent of APC, and I am here, I didn’t see anything like that.”
