The African Democratic Congress has alleged that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, is meddling in the ongoing area council elections in Abuja, cautioning that his presence around polling stations could intimidate voters and compromise the integrity of the electoral process.
In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party criticised what it described as the minister’s movement across voting centres under the pretext of supervising the exercise.
It also instructed its party representatives to carefully record and report any irregularities observed during the polls.
“We strongly condemn the movement of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, around various polling units in Abuja under the guise of ‘monitoring.’
“Wike’s ‘monitoring’ exercise, after unilaterally imposing a curfew on potential voters, represents direct interference in the election,” the party said.
The ADC argued that Wike is not a registered voter within the FCT and, as a serving cabinet member with known political affiliations, has no constitutional responsibility in the conduct of the election.
“He is not a registered voter in the FCT, and as a known partisan and cabinet minister, Wike has no constitutional role in the election exercise.
“His presence during active voting is therefore not only vexatious and meddlesome, but also risks intimidating voters and officials,” it said.
The party further disclosed that it had received reports suggesting incidents of voter suppression and intimidation in some areas of the territory. According to the statement, there were allegations of cooperation between agents of the All Progressives Congress and certain security personnel.
“In a similar vein, the ADC has received reports of voter suppression and intimidation in parts of the FCT, including alleged collaboration between APC agents and some security personnel,” the APC said.
Concerns were also raised about technical issues affecting the INEC Result Viewing Portal. The ADC noted that the IReV platform was inaccessible even as collation of results was underway.
“We also note disruptions to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), which has remained inaccessible even as results are being collated,” Abdullahi said.
Describing the situation as suspicious, the party called on the Independent National Electoral Commission to promptly restore the portal’s full functionality and to offer a clear public explanation regarding the disruption.
“We find this a curious coincidence and call on INEC to urgently restore full IReV functionality, with a clear public explanation of the disruption.
“We urge all our party agents and voters to remain calm but vigilant, and to document all incidents,” the party added.
What you should know
The ADC has accused FCT Minister Nyesom Wike of interfering in the Abuja area council elections by moving around polling units during voting.
The party claims his presence could intimidate voters and undermine the process, while also alleging voter suppression and disruptions to the INEC Result Viewing Portal.
The ADC has called on INEC to restore the portal and ensure transparency as results are being collated.
