Ben Adaji Jalingo
Frontline governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Taraba State, Chief David Sabo Kente, popularly known as DSK, has alleged widespread irregularities and manipulation in the party’s ongoing primaries in the state.
Speaking with journalists in Jalingo on Saturday, Kente claimed that no genuine House of Representatives primary election was conducted across Taraba, alleging that results were prepared before election materials arrived at polling centres.
“To the best of our knowledge, there was no election anywhere in Taraba. Yet we saw video clips of people lining up in schools and private centres just to create evidence that elections took place,” he said.
The APC chieftain alleged that while party officials were still distributing election materials, some aspirants had already concluded arrangements for the declaration of results.
“If you want to rig an election, you should at least wait for election materials before carrying out the process. But here, results were allegedly written before the elections even held,” he alleged.
Kente also warned that leaders who emerge through manipulated electoral processes would struggle to deliver good governance.
“Once you acquire power through the window, you can only perform through the window,” he stated.
The businessman-politician further denied claims that he had received money to step down from any political contest, insisting that he has never accepted financial inducement since joining politics in 2014.
“I have never collected a dime from anybody in the name of stepping down during elections. If I decide to remain silent or step aside, it is my personal decision,” he said.
Kente also accused party officials of altering the outcomes of APC congresses conducted in Ussa, Takum and Donga local government areas.
According to him, individuals elected during the congresses were allegedly replaced with different names during the swearing-in exercise.
“We already have copies of the authentic congress results in Abuja signed by officials who conducted the exercise, but different people were sworn in at the state level,” he alleged.
The APC governorship hopeful warned that the alleged manipulation could deepen crisis within the party and lead to legal disputes capable of affecting future elections in the state.
He also pointed to what he described as inconsistencies in the executives’ list for Ussa Local Government Area, alleging that male names appeared in positions designated for Woman Leader and Deputy Woman Leader.
Kente called on party leaders to urgently address the alleged irregularities to preserve unity within the APC ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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