The presidency has debunked claims by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), that it plans to rig Saturday’s governorship election in Kogi State in favour of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The PDP, had, yesterday, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, raised an alarm over what it described as plot by the APC and the Presidency to rig the elections in favour of the APC.
Metuh claimed that the party had information that the Presidency convened a clandestine meeting with the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies to perfect plans to rig the election.
However, President Muhammadu Buhari’s spokesperson, Mallam Garba Shehu, explained that the motive behind the ‘five-minute meeting’ President Buhari had with the nation’s electoral umpire and the police, was aimed at having credible election in Kogi State on Saturday, November 21.
According to Shehu, the president called the meeting to inform INEC and the police that “he expected nothing short of a free, fair and credible election.”
“He said he suffered election manipulation in 2003, 2007 and 2011 and would not like to have any Nigerian go through that again,” Mr. Shehu said.
“The meeting was short and straight to the point. It ended after five minutes,” Shehu added.
He said only Mr. Buhari spoke at the meeting, others just listened.
The presidential spokesperson called on Nigerians to “be wary of the PDP’s fruitless attempts to destroy national institutions President Buhari is determined to rebuild.”
“They (PDP) started with the courts, then the EFCC, then onto the police and now they are on the one-week old INEC.
“When will PDP allow our national institutions to do their job?” he asked.
