The PDP in a statement on Saturday night said it was aware that some APC leaders were rushing to Abuja in a desperate move to manipulate the process and frustrate the smooth conclusion of the election, having realised that the APC had been rejected by the people.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has advised the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, to know that rushing to Abuja in the face of “looming defeat” of his party in the Osun State governorship election could not overturn the will of the people at the poll.
The PDP in a statement on Saturday night said it was aware that some APC leaders were rushing to Abuja in a desperate move to manipulate the process and frustrate the smooth conclusion of the election, having realised that the APC had been rejected by the people.
PDP, in the statement by its spokesman, Debo Ologunagba said, “Asiwaju Tinubu must know that the people of Osun State have spoken and that his running to Abuja cannot save the deflated Governor Gboyega Oyetola from the reverberating verdict of the ballot box.
“Our Party charges the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the APC leadership in Abuja to note that the course of the election is already known to all and that the people of Osun State will never accept any outcome to the contrary.”
The PDP charged INEC to resist the manipulations and pressure from the APC by sticking to its assurance to the people that the election will be transparent and conclusive at the first ballot.
The PDP congratulated the people of Osun State and urged them to remain at alert, protect their votes and ensure that the results declared at the polling centers are not altered but duly reflected at the collation and final declaration.
There are a total of 1,955,657 registered voters in the election which held across 3,763 polling units.
The 15 political parties’ candidates participating in the election include: Mr Oyegoke Omigbodun, Social Democratic Party (SDP); Dr Akin Ogunbiyi (Accord); Mr Yusuf Lasun (Labour Party); Munirudeen Atanda (Action Democratic Party).
More voters are expected to participate in the election than the 2018 poll when 767,444 electorates out of the 1,668,524 registered voters exercised their franchise.
In 2018, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Gboyega Oyetola as winner, having polled 255,505 votes against PDP’s Ademola Adeleke, who had 255,023 votes at the end of a supplementary election, which held in seven polling units across four local governments amidst allegations of harassment and other forms of malpractice.
The INEC had scheduled the rerun after declaring the main election inconclusive, won by Adeleke with 353 votes after polling 254,698 against Oyetola’s 254,345. It stated that the margin of votes between Adeleke and Oyetola was less than the number of cancelled votes in seven polling units.