The All Progressives Congress (APC) has announced that it will boycott the upcoming Local Government election rerun in Plateau State, scheduled for October 19, 2024. The party made this known in a statement issued on Thursday by its State Publicity Secretary, Shittu Bamaiyi.
In the statement, Bamaiyi revealed that the APC has instructed its supporters to stay away from the rerun, citing concerns over the credibility of the election process.
“The party has resolved that, since PLASIEC and its paymaster, the Plateau State Government, have no respect for the will and choice of the people, nor for the tenets of democracy, there is no reason for the APC to recognise or revalidate this illegality under any guise,” the statement read.
Bamaiyi further criticised the Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission (PLASIEC), stating that it was “both ridiculous and scandalous” for the commission to call for a rerun in selected electoral wards after having declared the original elections transparent, free, and fair.
“In fact, it would have been more appropriate if the entire elections had been nullified based on the well-established and genuine complaints arising from the conduct of the elections by some political parties other than the PDP,” he argued.
He added that it would be “foolhardy, a waste of resources, and a security risk” for the APC to participate in the rerun, predicting a repeat of the alleged irregularities from the original polls held last Wednesday.
Bamaiyi also highlighted instances where some APC candidates were declared winners by PLASIEC but were not issued certificates of return, preventing them from being sworn in.
The APC, therefore, urged its councillorship candidates and supporters in the affected wards to disregard PLASIEC’s directives regarding the rerun.
In closing, the party commended the people of Plateau State, particularly its supporters, for expressing their political preferences clearly and urged them to remain calm and peaceful despite the provocations.
