Phrank Shaibu, a media aide to the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has blamed the electoral malpractice carried out by the Adamawa Resident Electoral Commission, Hudu Yunusa-Ari, on order from above.
He said what the REC did can be likened to what the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, Mahmood Yakubu did during the February 25 presidential election.
The Informant247 recalls that the REC, on Sunday April 16, 2023 declared the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC in Adamawa State, Senator Aishatu Ahmed Binani as the winner of the election even while collation of results were still ongoing.
The headquarters of the electoral commission has taken a quick step on the critical electoral issue as it suspended the REC and postponed the announcement of the results indefinitely.
Reacting in a statement, the media to the presidential candidate of the PDP, Shaibu said the national leadership of the electoral commission has hand in the activities of the REC.
He condemned the suspension of the REC without an arrest, saying: “It is crystal clear even to the blind that the Adamawa REC learnt well from the INEC Chairman. As a matter of fact, the baby goat learns to eat grass by diligently watching the mama devour the lush grass around them”.
“Over a month ago, an audio clip where the Adamawa REC was heard directing an election official, Hammajam Mohammed, to rig the governorship election in favour of Binani.
“In the leaked audio, Yunusa told Mohammed to do everything humanly possible to make Binani win. He told the electoral official that he was instructed by a higher authority to make Binani win. Governor Ahmadu Fintiri complained severally about the compromised REC but INEC did nothing about it.
“Despite having over one month to prepare for this supplementary poll, INEC retained this compromised REC who went ahead to undermine the election once more. From all that has happened, it is obvious that Yunusa-Ari was acting on orders from above and that is why Governor Ahmadu Fintiri’s warnings were ignored.
“This carefully orchestrated action is a reflection of the electoral heist of February 25, 2023 when the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, decided to announce Bola Tinubu of the APC as winner despite the many irregularities and complaints from several opposition parties. Indeed, Yunusa-Ari acted like his father and boss, Mahmood Yakubu.”
He added, “INEC had in a statement by National Commissioner, Festus Okoye, admitted to awarding a sensitive contract to the Binani Printing Press Limited, a firm owned by the APC governorship candidate.
“In the statement, Okoye had claimed that the company was awarded the contract as a way of stimulating the economy and encouraging Nigerian enterprise. It is obvious that Binani and INEC are in bed together.
“How will Mahmood Yakubu be remembered? Well, Nigerian singers like Falz and Vector have already composed a song titled Yakubu so that generations unborn will remember the sort of character he is. The video alone has garnered over one million views on Youtube and has become a social media sensation.
“This is a man who promised over and over again to upload the results of elections in real-time unto the INEC’s portal and failed to do so yet he lacks the decency to apologise to over 200 million people. Nearly two months after that shambolic election, all the results have yet to be uploaded.
“Results from Rivers State even show that Tinubu did not even win in that state. Rather than suspend the announcement of results, Mr Yakubu decided to announce Tinubu as the winner.”