ADC Accuses Wike Of Meddling In FCT Polls Under Guise Of Monitoring

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has condemned the movement of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, around various polling units in Abuja during Saturday’s FCT elections.

The opposition party described Wike’s presence as direct interference in the electoral process.

The FCT minister is a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but supports and works for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

The ADC, in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said Wike’s visits to polling units under the guise of “monitoring” were unconstitutional and potentially intimidating to voters and election officials.

“Wike’s ‘monitoring’ exercise, after unilaterally imposing a curfew on potential voters, represents direct interference in the election,” the statement read.

“He is not a registered voter in the FCT, and as a known partisan and cabinet minister, Wike has no constitutional role in the election exercise. His presence during active voting is therefore not only vexatious and meddlesome, but also risks intimidating voters and officials.”

The ADC further raised concerns over alleged voter suppression and intimidation in parts of the FCT, citing reports of alleged collaboration between All Progressives Congress (APC) agents and some security personnel.

The party alleged disruptions to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Result Viewing Portal (IReV), which it said had remained inaccessible even as results were being collated.

“We find this a curious coincidence and call on INEC to urgently restore full IReV functionality, with a clear public explanation of the disruption,” the statement said.

The party urged its agents and supporters to remain composed but alert amid the irregularities.

“We urge all our party agents and voters to remain calm but vigilant, and to document all incidents,” Abdullahi said.

Meanwhile, Wike’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, had earlier shared a video on Facebook claiming an ADC party agent had been arrested “with more than 20 voter
cards at Polling Unit 001, Kabusa Primary School, FCT.”