The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has issued a warning to the PDP against making libelous allegations against its chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.
Yakubu’s chief press secretary Rotimi Oyekanmi said in a statement on Friday that the PDP must understand that making libelous statements is actionable.
The party has been calling for Yakubu’s resignation, alleging he rigged the 2023 presidential election.
Oyekanmi, however, said the call by the PDP was misplaced.
“Interestingly, the PDP did not provide any convincing evidence to back up all the spurious allegations it listed as Yakubu’s ‘infractions’.
“To be sure, the PDP failed to provide any evidence to substantiate the allegations of Yakubu’s “brazen violation of the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, INEC’s Regulations and Guidelines, and criminal manipulation and alteration of election results.
“The PDP also did not give the evidence to prove its claims that Prof. Yakubu “sabotaged the uploading and transmission of results from polling units,” he said.
Oyekanmi added that besides, the ‘several evidences’ that the PDP claimed ‘abound in the six geo-political zones of the country where winning figures scored by the PDP were switched in favour of the APC’ were also not laid bare.
“To be sure, INEC does not rig elections. Rather, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) has, since its introduction, among other innovations, ensured the integrity of the electoral process by ensuring that only properly registered voters are allowed to vote on election day,” he said.
Oyekanmi advised the PDP to toe the part of honour and pursue its case in court.
“More importantly, the PDP is hereby reminded that making libelous allegations against the person of the INEC Chairman is actionable. The party should henceforth desist from the practice,” he said.
