Wole Oluyede, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the Ekiti state election has accused security operatives of intimidating voters and criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over delays in the accreditation and voting process.
Oluyede made the allegations on Saturday after casting his vote at Osaguru Hall, Polling Unit 6, Ward 3, Ikere-Ekiti.
The PDP candidate expressed frustration over what he described as an unacceptably slow voting process, alleging that a malfunctioning Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machine had hindered voter accreditation and caused long delays.
According to him, only a few voters had been accredited and allowed to vote more than an hour after polling commenced, raising concerns about the integrity of the exercise.
Oluyede further alleged that some security personnel deployed to the area were intimidating voters, claiming that certain operatives were using unofficial vehicles during the election.
He said he had documented the incidents and would make the evidence public at an appropriate time.
“I feel very unfortunate that all I can get here is a handful of cameras, whereas down the road where the deputy governor votes, there is an army of policemen harassing people,” he said.
The PDP flagbearer questioned the conduct of the election, accusing INEC of failing to promptly address the BVAS challenge despite reportedly contacting technical officials.
“The process is actually useless. People have been here for about one and a half hours, and only five people have voted in my polling unit. They have called the RATech for the last 45 minutes, and he hasn’t been here. You cannot disenfranchise these people. It is sad for democracy in Nigeria,” Oluyede stated.
He called on electoral authorities to urgently address the challenges to ensure that eligible voters are not denied their constitutional right to participate in the election.