FCT Polls: PDP alleges intimidation, sets up legal team, demands release of Kuje results

2026-02-22 - 17:26

By Luminous Jannamike ABUJA — The Kabiru Turaki-led National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has alleged intimidation and manipulation in last Saturday’s Area Council elections in the Federal Capital Territory. The party also announced a special legal team to handle petitions and demanded the immediate release of outstanding results in Kuje Area Council. In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, the party congratulated its successful candidates but said the victories came under difficult and questionable conditions. “This victory, though less in number than we anticipated, is particularly gladdening because it is against the background of unprecedented intimidation, high-powered money politics and brazen executive brigandage,” the party said. The PDP specifically congratulated Gwagwalada Chairman-elect Mohammed Kasim and councillors declared winners by the Independent National Electoral Commission. “Reports and video evidence abound where armed security personnel were used to cart away result sheets in polling units, intimidate voters, and unduly influence the outcome of the elections,” it added. The party announced the constitution of a special legal team headed by its National Legal Adviser, Shafi Bara’u, Esq., to assist candidates pursuing post-election litigation. “They should immediately contact the National Legal Adviser for prompt action, as delay is fatal in election petition cases,” the statement noted. The PDP further attributed what it described as low voter turnout in the polls to the Electoral Act 2026 and warned of possible consequences for future elections. “The incredible voter apathy in these polls is a direct response to the anti-people Electoral Act 2026, where the people have completely lost faith in the electoral outcomes from elections conducted under this Act. “These Local Council polls may just be a foreshadowing of the forthcoming general elections in 2027, if changes are not urgently made,” it warned. The party urged the National Assembly and the President to take steps to address the concerns raised. “There is time to correct the wrongdoing by the National Assembly and the President to save our democracy from collapse,” the statement added. The PDP also expressed concern over the delay in announcing results from two wards in Kuje Area Council and called for urgent action by the electoral body. “We are concerned that the results from two wards in Kuje Area Council are yet to be announced by INEC,” the party said. It warned that the delay had heightened apprehension because of what it described as its marginal lead in the affected wards. “We call on the Chairman of INEC to immediately order the announcement of the results in Kuje Central and Kabi Wards, most of which have been posted on the IREV. “Election results must remain a true reflection of the votes of the people; anything less invalidates the entire process. We should uphold the sanctity of the ballot,” the PDP stated.