Oyo PDP crisis: INEC denies N10m bribery from Makinde to scuttle PDP congress

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has denied receiving N10 million bribe from Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State to scuttle the congress of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state. The INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Oyo State, Mutiu Agboke, refuted the allegation that he received N10 million from Governor Makinde to frustrate the recent  PDP ward congress in Oyo State.

The REC, in a statement, dismissed the allegation as spurious, baseless by a faceless attention seeking group.

The REC in the statement declared: “the attention of the Resident Electoral Commissioner of Oyo State, Barrister Mutiu Agboke, has been drawn to spurious, baseless and unfounded allegations by a faceless and attention seeking group of receiving N10 million.

“The immediate reaction of the Resident Electoral Commissioner is not to give undue popularity to these individuals by joining issues with a faceless and unguided people, but for the discerning minds in Oyo State who might be concerned about the propaganda targeted at the person of the REC.”

The Resident Electoral Commissioner affirmed that there was no time he was in any meeting with Governor Makinde nor did he receive any N10 million naira, as alleged by a group within the State’s PDP.

The statement read in part: “For the avoidance of doubt, Barrister Agboke was never at meeting with Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State on Saturday, neither did he receive N10 million either directly or by proxy as insinuated by these enemies of Democratic norms nor did he instruct the staff of the commission at the local government to close the office at 1.00pm on the day of the congress with the intention of not receiving the result of the factional group in the PDP.”

A faction in the State PDP accused the REC of ‘hobnobbing with Governor Seyi Makinde and receiving a sum of N10 million to frustrate the September 25 ward congress in the state’.

The PDP faction in Oyo State had last week passed a vote-of-no-confidence on Governor Makinde.