The leadership of the People Democratic Party (PDP) in the Southwest has called on the Inspector General of Police to probe the alleged compromise by the security personnel in the just concluded Ondo State governorship poll.

The party, in a statement issued at the end of the Southwest zonal exco meeting by the Publicity Secretary, Chief Sanya Atofarati expressed utter disappointment over the alleged poor conduct of the poll, alleging security agencies compromised the election.

The party regretted that despite high expectations that the governorship poll would be better organised and managed after the ‘poorly conducted Edo election’, the exercise was marred by noticeable lapses on the part of the INEC and the security agencies.

The party noted that despite the security agencies’ preparedness and assurance to provide a level playing ground for all the political parties, the security personnel posted to Ondo State for election were heavily compromised in favour of the APC.

It added that the governorship poll failed integrity tests and fell short of the global standard of credibility considering the widespread lapses including malfunction of the Biometric Voter’s Authentication System (BVAS) and delayed arrival of the election materials in PDP strongholds.
It appreciated the Ondo State Governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde and his Osun State counterpart, Ademola Adeleke for their immense contribution before, during, and after the election.

13 candidates accept election results

Meanwhile, despite the complaints by the leadership of the PDP leaders about the Ondo governorship election, 13 candidates who participated in the poll have accepted the outcome of the poll.
The 13 candidates also pledged to support Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa in his quest to develop the state.

They spoke after they met with Governor Aiyedatiwa at the Alagbaka Government House.

The candidates were accompanied by State Chairmen of their various political parties.

They were from the Accord (A), Action Alliance (AA), Allied Peoples Movement (APM), New Nigeria People’s Party ( NNPP), All People’s Party (APP), African Democratic Party (ADP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Labour Party (LP), Youth Party (YP), Young People’s Party (YPP), Boot Party (BP) and the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).

In their various speeches, the candidates said they had put the election aside and accepted the outcome.

They said they were prepared to work with the governor for the development of the State.

On his part, Governor Aiyedatiwa thanked the candidates for pledging to support his administration.

Aiyedatiwa said it was a collective duty for everybody to contribute meaningfully towards the development of the State.

The House of Representatives has called on the Houses of Assembly in the six Southwest states to support the ongoing review and amendment of the country’s 1999 constitution.

Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, who is the Chairman of the committee on the Constitution Review made the appeal in Ikogosi, Ekiti State, during a retreat for Speakers and principal officers of the State Houses of Assembly in the South West.

Kalu, who underscored the crucial roles the state assemblies play in ensuring successful alteration of the constitution, said they remained fundamental bodies to facilitate amendment of the existing legal framework.

He pledged the House’s commitment to work closely with the state assemblies in the ongoing constitution review exercise towards producing a more robust legal framework that would meet and satisfy the desires and yearnings of Nigerians.

The Deputy Speaker disclosed that the Committee on Constitution Review has received a total of 161 proposals from the memoranda submitted, saying the panel is assiduously working towards delivering the reviewed constitution by December 2025.

He said: “In the amendment or review of the constitution, there is a process that the constitution abides with, and one of them is the active participation of the state legislatures.
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“You cannot amend the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria without the involvement of the state legislation. They occupy the cardinal, fundamental position in the structure of the amendment of the constitution.
“This visit is to strengthen our existing relationship. We are here today to see the Southwest Caucus of the Houses of Assembly to intimate them on the process and how far we have gone in our efforts to have a constitution reviewed by December 2025,” he added.

The Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly and Chairman of Southwest Caucus, Hon Stephen Aribasoye hailed the National Assembly for collaborating with the legislative body, stressing that such synergy would foster unity and bring success in the process of constitutional review.

He added that the retreat was borne to foster cooperation among the Southwest region in ensuring that peer review and synergy thrive in the lawmaking process.

“You can’t have a constitutional amendment without the input of state legislation, which is 2/3 majority of the state House of Assembly have to agree before you can have any bill in Nigeria.

“The Current National Assembly has been very fair in ensuring that all stakeholders are carried along including the Houses of Assembly in Nigeria. No nation can strive without good laws and laws are made by the legislative arms of the government”, he added.

Ekiti State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Abibat Adubiaro, applauded the Southwest Houses of Assemblies for being at the front burner of human development.

A Socio-Political group on Saturday demanded that Governor Ademola Adeleke should apologise to the leadership of the police and residents of the state for defending a murder suspect who engaged security operatives in a gun battle.

It will be recalled that an appointee of Adeleke, who is the head of Park Managers, Nurudeen Wakili was arrested but shot while attempting to escape from the police after a gun battle and ammunition were discovered in his car.

Reacting to the development, the group, Osun Progressives Youths (O-SPY), through its coordinator, Tunmise Ajiboye in a statement on Friday berated Adeleke’s stance about the incident.
He cautioned that, “Our governor must be wary of defending a suspect who was arrested with arms and ammunition who engaged in a gun battle before his arrest. Doing this will give residents the courage to bear one, hence anarchy has been invited by Osun number one citizen.”
He queried “How could one defend a murder suspect whose residents that the governor swore to protect had written several petitions against, over his threats and assaults on them?”

“We hereby urge Adeleke to apologize to police leadership and residents for defending the murder suspect, probably in error because he was his appointee.”

Meanwhile, Concerned Osun Civil Society Groups, led by Comrade Olanrewaju Stephen, berated police over the arrest and shooting of Alowonle, urging the IGP to probe the police team that carried out the operation.