The governorship candidate of the Labour party in Edo state, Olumide Akpata, has alleged that there were internal vote-selling by some members of the party during the election.
The LP candidate spoke on ‘Politics Today’ a Channels Television programme, on Wednesday night and monitored by News About Nigeria.
Akpata claimed that widespread economic hardship clouded voters’ thinking, which led to the compromise.
He also tagged the election as a “transaction”, alleging widespread vote-buying by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The former president of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) addressed queries regarding his emotional reaction to the election loss, while shedding light on his personal feelings about the outcome.
“Nigeria happens to you, so I’m old enough to understand my country, nothing shocks me in Nigeria, save for, let me say that I was slightly taken aback by the reaction of the people,” he said.
“I am not saying we won the election. I am saying that there was no election, there was a transaction.
“So, it’s very difficult to now say who would have won or who would have lost. 300,000 votes by our estimation were bought by the two parties actively participating in that bazaar.
“Some stayed at home, but a large number came out and sold their votes. That’s the point I’m making to you. What happened was a tragedy. Let us remove focus from Olu Akpata and the labour Party and interrogate our electoral process.
“Let me tell you, members of my party sold their votes. It is something that we must look into closely. So, Papa, Mama, the pikin, we were not sure of the process, but we had more confidence in the people.
“The people decided to go for freshly minted cash that was on offer. So, for me, that was a lesson, that was a big lesson to learn. — If you think that you know the people, you have to think again and you have to look inwards.
“The level of deprivation, poverty in the land has made it such that the people are unable to connect the dots between their current situation and those who are the cause of their situation.
“I’m not making any excuses for the people. I understand. I empathize. However, the facts remain the facts. This is the scenario.”
