TheCable

Segun Oni, Ekiti governorship candidate of Social Democratic Party (SDP), says he received reports of vote buying in Oye — a local government area in the state.

This is as the governorship election is currently taking place across 16 LGAs of the state.

Sixteen candidates are vying for the governorship seat.

Speaking after casting his vote, the governorship candidate said the voting process for him went well.

“But you can’t use one to judge how it’s going all round in the state,” he said.

“We have to wait till we get reports of how it is all over the state.”

On vote buying, Oni said, “I have received reports of vote buying in Oye.”

“On the new electoral act, it has raised the confidence of the people. There’s massive turnout. People now have more confidence in the system.”

Kemi Elebute-Halle, candidate of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), had alleged that the leading parties in the election were buying votes.

TheCable had seen a party agent folding cash into the hand of a voter at a polling unit in Ido-Osi.

Mahmood Yakubu, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), had during a stakeholders’ meeting ahead of the election, said to discourage the practice of vote buying, the commission changed the configuration of polling units to bring the ballot boxes closer to the voting cubicles and also banned the use of mobile phones and photographic devices by voters while in the voting cubicles.

“Like every conscientious Nigerian, the Commission is deeply worried by the use of money to induce voters on Election Day. Clearly, vote buying is a threat to our electoral democracy. We have also intensified our collaboration with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) to deal with both the buyers and the takers under the law. I urge all stakeholders to join the Commission in tackling the menace,” he said.