Edo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress has alerted security agencies over a plot by supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party to stage a protest at the State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal at the Office of the Attorney General on Tuesday.
The Chairman of the State APC, Jarret Tenebe, disclosed in a petition issued on Monday.
It partly read, ‘We urged security agencies, including the Police, Department of State Services and Nigerian Army, to be vigilant and take necessary measures to prevent a potential disruption of the Office of the Attorney General by supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo.
‘The disruption allegedly aims to influence the ongoing Edo State Governorship tribunal.’
The development comes a few hours after a tribunal sitting reserved judgment in the petition filed by the PDP and Ighodalo challenging the 21 September, 2024 governorship election in Edo State.
A three-member tribunal led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi reserved the matter for judgment on Monday after counsel in the matter adopted their final written addresses.
Continuing, Tenebe emphasised that the party will not tolerate any attempt to compromise the judicial process or disrupt the proceedings.
The APC chairman urged security agencies to take the threat seriously and hold the organisers of the protest accountable for the outcome of their actions.
Reacting, the Deputy National Youth Leader of the PDP, Timothy Osadolor, said it is ‘most unfortunate’ that such an outcry is coming from the APC.
While acknowledging that they truly planned to have a peaceful rally in Abuja, Osadolor told The PUNCH that they found it strange that the ruling party has been striving frantically to change the narrative.
He said, ‘The APC and its agents have become a propaganda machine. We saw the kind of election they conducted in Edo, where votes were allocated randomly. We also saw the pollution they also did with the Rivers LG election.
‘The rally we are having is a peaceful one. What we are trying to say is that what happened in Edo must not be allowed to stand in a democracy if we want to avoid strife in this country. It is something that all men of goodwill must stand up to and say: enough is enough.
‘The president must call Jarret Tenebe, the state APC chairman, and all his hireling to order. He should let them know that the reason he is president today was because a man called Goodluck Jonathan handed over peacefully and seamlessly to his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, who handed the baton to him.’
