PDP Warns INEC Over Alleged Plot To Shift 2019 Elections

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has warned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against contemplating about shifting the dates for the 2019 general elections.

PDP also admonished the commission’s boss, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, not to heed to the pressure of been used by the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) and President Muhammadu Buhari to carry out their plans to truncate the sanity of 2019 general election.

The Spokesman of the party, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement Wednesday said, that the PDP knows about the plot been hatched by the commission to postpone the election.

Saying that the plot was meant to push for illegal tenure elongation for President Buhari and the APC, the PDP told the President and his party to trash the thoughts of staying in power a day beyond May 29, 2019.

Ologbondiyan said that the PDP is aware of the series of meeting held by the APC with INEC as part of the move to frustrate the success of the 2019 General Elections.

The statement said, “Nigerians and the international community have also noted the various ploys by INEC to frustrate a credible elections, including its stiff opposition to the amendment of the Electoral Act by the National Assembly to check APC rigging plans in addition to its exposed collaborations with INEC to manipulate the voters register, enroll underage voters and secretly creating 30,000 illegal polling centers in certain remote areas from where it plans to allocate fictitious votes to the APC.

“Nigerians may recall that the PDP had earlier alerted of the plot by the Buhari Presidency to enmesh the 2019 elections into a needless controversy by deliberately delaying the presentation of the election budget to the National Assembly until the time the parliament was proceeding on annual recess.

“Ostensibly to ensure that the election does not escape controversy, President Buhari demanded that the fund be taken from already approved budget for lawmakers’ constituency votes, despite entreaties by well-meaning Nigerians for a fresh budget for the elections.

“Seeing that Nigerians are standing shoulder to shoulder with the PDP to resist and dismantle their rigging machinery, the APC and Buhari Presidency are now trying to use INEC to frustrate the elections and cause crisis in our country.

“The PDP therefore rejects this plot by APC and INEC. The 2019 election must hold as scheduled. Nigerians are ready for elections and cannot wait to vote out President Buhari and his dysfunctional APC.

“In that wise, our party cautions the INEC Chairman to open up, expose the Buhari Presidency and immediately commence the application of its constitutional First Line Charge funding instruments instead entangling itself with the plot to destroy our nation”.