The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has alleged that it is being denied the opportunity to deploy its polling agents in at least 10 local government areas of Osun State ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.
The party’s governorship candidate, Dr Najeem Folasayo Salaam, made the allegation while speaking to European Union (EU) election observers who visited the ADC campaign office at Oranmiyan House in Osogbo on Friday.
Salaam said the party had complied with the requirements of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by uploading the details of its nominated agents through the commission’s designated platform.
However, he alleged that when the list of accredited party agents was released, the ADC discovered that its agents were missing in about 10 local government areas of the state.
According to him, the development could undermine the party’s ability to effectively monitor the voting and collation processes in the affected areas.
“Don’t just fold your arms. Don’t just watch us. We are helpless. We can’t help ourselves out of this situation. We are very helpless in this country,” Salaam told the observers.
He also expressed concern over what he described as the inability of Nigerians to distinguish between military rule and democracy, particularly when citizens’ rights and voices are allegedly disregarded.
“The people don’t even see the difference between military rule and democracy in Nigeria,” he said.
Explaining the situation further, the ADC candidate said some of the party’s agents had reportedly been denied the right to serve as agents despite being properly nominated through the INEC platform.
“My agent tells the local government that he has been denied the right to have an agent. It was a party that did not have a party agent. What is my credibility in that election?” he asked.
He added that the ADC had used the platform provided for the recruitment and submission of party agents, but some of its agents were allegedly excluded from the final list.
“When we were drawing the cards, in my own local government, there was a local government where a complete ward did not have a party agent. And it travels from one local government to another,” Salaam said.
The allegation comes a day before the Osun State governorship election, with political parties and candidates intensifying preparations for the poll.
The ADC candidate urged election observers to pay attention to the concerns raised by the party and ensure that the electoral process remains transparent and credible.
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