Exposed: How The 2023 Elections Will Be Allegedly Rigged in Lagos

By Akinjide Aina

Impeccable sources close to the All Progressives Congress, APC presidential candidate and former Lagos state governor,  Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu have informed The Source magazine that there is octane anxiety within the camp of the former governor as to the preference of millions of non-Yoruba Lagos voters in the February 25th, 2023 presidential election.

According to one of the sources, “there is mounting concern that votes of millions of non-Yoruba voters in Lagos, especially those of them from the Southeast and South-south may not be for Asiwaju, so to this end “structural” containment of their strongholds is being considered”

Pressed to explain what “structural containment” means, the source revealed that “it means deliberately shutting such areas out in the early distribution of electoral materials”

Another source boasted “that the distribution of electoral materials will be done by us and we will not fail to take advantage of it”

This magazine learnt that the “us” refers to the Musiliu Akinsanya aka MC Oluomo the led Lagos State Park and Garage Management Committee which the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC for Lagos, Olusegun Agbaje, said he will partner for the distribution of electoral materials on the election day rather than the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW which the electoral body has entered an agreement with to move the materials.

Oluomo, an ally of the APC Presidential Candidate was the Chairman of the Lagos chapter of NURTW. However, following the internecine crisis in the state chapter of the union which led to his sack by the national leadership of NURTW and the subsequent proscription of its activities in Lagos by the state government, Oluomo was appointed the General Manager of Parks and Garage Management Committee by governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

The magazine was told that part of the plot is to, through the instrumentality of the Oluomo committee, delay the distribution of INEC materials to areas populated by none Yoruba residents perceived as hostile to the APC and Tinubu’s presidential ambition, at least 6 hours behind the official commencement of ballotting.

The idea, it was gathered, is aimed at wearing potential voters out, getting them frustrated and forcing them to return home after hours of waiting thus foisting extremely low voter turnout in such areas.

Parts of Lagos allegedly marked out for this grim treatment, the magazine was told, include Oshodi-Isolo, Mafoluku-Oke Afa, Ijora Badia, Amukoko, Alaba, Surulere, Orile, Itire, Ijesha, Cele, Okota, Ajegunle, Olodi Apapa, Coconut, Ojokoro-Ijaiye, Agbara, Ojo, Okoko, Satellite Town, FESTAC, Mushin, Ojuelegba among others.

As part of this alleged sinister plot, this magazine has equally been told that wanton mayhem may be unleashed on the areas listed above either 24 hours before the balloting or on election day proper by sponsored political thugs to scare eligible voters away from coming out to vote.

Essentially, Agbaje’s insistence on entrusting electoral material to the Lagos Park Committee for distribution as well as his reaction to issues around voters card collection has pitted him against the presidential candidate of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and some civil society groups who accuse him of plotting to rig the elections in Lagos for the APC.

According to Phrank Shaibu, spokesman of the Atiku presidential campaign, “how could such people be given sensitive materials to be distributed across Lagos on election day? This has already undermined the possibility of a free and fair election. INEC must sanction Mr Agbaje for insisting on using MC Oluomo’s committee despite protests from members of the public.

“Recall that it was Mr Agbaje who superintended over the fraudulent and violent Osun governorship rerun which produced Gboyega Oyetola as governor. US Consul General, John Bray was spot on when he stated, ‘We witnessed what appeared to be incidents of interference and intimidation of voters and heard reports of harassment or party monitors, journalists and domestic observers.

“Unfortunately, it is the same Agbaje, who could not effectively supervise a rerun in a few polling units that have been given the task of superintending the election in Nigeria’s largest state with over seven million registered voters. The election is doomed to fail if INEC doesn’t do the right thing by removing him”

And reacting to Agbaje’s characterization of the Igbo residing in Lagos whose voters cards were not found as “migrants”, a Christian body, His Word Ministries and Apostolic Round Table, in a statement entitled “Segun Agbaje: Lagos INEC REC; a System-enabled Election Rigger?” and signed by its National President, Dr Bolaji O Akinyemiquerieded, “how can the head of the umpire be the echo of the unreasonable voice of street touts against the Igbos?

Continuing the statement said:  “In Segun Agbaje’s mindset the Igbos aren’t citizens of Nigeria in Lagos, but immigrants who must be denied access to rights of citizens in Lagos. Segun has joineforcesce with market touts and Area boys demanding that Alaba traders should return to Onitsha.

“It is dangerous and catastrophic for all Nigerians and political parties to fold their hands and allow the election in Lagos to go on under Segun Agbaje as the head of the umpire”

On its part, Intersociety, a civil society organisation has petitioned INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu demanding Agbaje’s removal.

In the petition letter signed by its Board Chairman, Emeka Ugbeagbalasi, the group rued that “apart from genocidally referring to them as ‘South-East migrants’, the REC did not hide his hatred of the South-East residents in Lagos by denying them PVCs under frivolous circumstances.

“As if these were not enough, the REC ended up vicariously, if not directly, inciting native residents preparatory to unleashing ‘Election Day and Post-Election Day’ ethnic cleansing against the South-East residents in the State.

“He also hatefully lied unpardonably by describing the decades-old South-East residents in Lagos as ‘those that migrated and settled in Lagos to escape insecurity in the South-East”