The African Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Ekiti State, Dare Bejide, on Monday, alleged mop-up of Permanent Voter Cards in parts of the state by some agents who he said were illegally collecting the document.
The Director, Communications, Media and Publicity, Amb Dare Bejide Campaign Organisation, Chief Gboyega Aribisogan, said the perpetrators, who he identified as All Progressives Congress agents, wanted to use the cards for sinister purposes, as he appealed to residents not to succumb to such.
Aribisogan also alleged at a press briefing in Ado Ekiti that some political thugs were being kitted in fake Amotekun Security Network uniforms, adding that “the individuals are being trained and mobilised to intimidate voters, snatch ballot boxes and attack polling agents on election day.”
The ADC campaign spokesperson, who said the impersonation of Amotekun operatives was a deliberate plot to confuse voters and discredit a regional security outfit that Ekiti people trusted.
He called on the Ekiti Amotekun Corps Commander, Brig Gen Olu Adewa (retd) and the police “to immediately identify and arrest anyone found wearing an Amotekun uniform without authorisation.”
Aribisogan said, “Across several local government areas in Ekiti, our party has documented a pattern where agents and foot soldiers of the APC are moving from house to house and polling units demanding the collection of PVCs and National Identification Numbers from voters.
“They promised cash, food items, or welfare support in exchange. This is a direct violation of Section 121 of the Electoral Act 2022, which prohibits voter inducement and the seizure of voter cards.
“The aim is clear – disenfranchise citizens, harvest PVCs, and use them for thumb-printing and multiple voting on election day. No citizen should surrender their PVC or NIN to any political party agent. Your PVC is your power. Once you give it up, you give up your voice.”
He called on the Independent National Electoral Commission to issue a public warning against PVC and NIN harvesting and to deploy its monitoring teams to flashpoints immediately.
“We use this medium to tell Ekiti people not to be intimidated. Do not surrender your PVC or NIN. Do not be cowed by thugs in borrowed uniforms. Your vote is your right, and it is your power. Come out on election day, vote and protect your vote,” Aribisogan stated.
But the APC state Publicity Secretary, Segun Dipe, who spoke in a telephone interview, said the ADC members had only displayed their ignorance once again with their allegations.
Dipe, who said advanced technology had made use of another person’s PVC impossible, queried what APC would want to do with anybody’s voter card.
“The ADC have run out of what to say, and they are only displaying their ignorance. Nobody is mopping up PVCs.
“We will pardon their ignorance if they think that you can collect anybody’s PVC. Why can’t they collect another person’s PVC and see how useful or useless it is? So we are pardoning their ignorance,” he said.
The APC spokesperson, who also dismissed the allegation of kitting thugs in Amotekun outfits, said, “Amotekun is the project of the APC government. It is not the project of any other person. So why would we get fake Amotekun when we can recruit as many people into Amotekun?
“The duty of Amotekun is different. Amotekun is to ensure that people are not kidnapped; they go into the bushes. Are we kitting fake people to go into the bushes? So again, we pardon their ignorance for not knowing the roles and functions of Amotekun.”