The announcement of results from the All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Representatives primary election in Ondo State was disrupted on Sunday after suspected political thugs invaded the party secretariat in Akure.
The hoodlums, believed to be loyal to some disqualified aspirants, reportedly stormed the APC secretariat during the collation of results from Saturday’s primary election exercise, forcing party officials and supporters to flee the venue.
As tension rose at the secretariat, the Ondo APC Chairman, Kolawole Babatunde, alongside party executives, delegates, electoral officials, and supporters, reportedly escaped through the back entrance to avoid possible violence.
Security operatives also hurriedly evacuated members of the seven-man National Assembly Primary Election Committee led by Hon. Iboroma Harry Dabibi following the disturbance.
Eyewitnesses said the suspected thugs interrupted the process and demanded an immediate suspension of the announcement of results.
One source alleged that a disqualified aspirant was behind the disruption.
“It was a disqualified aspirant who allegedly mobilised the thugs to the venue. The atmosphere suddenly became tense, and people started leaving because nobody wanted the situation to turn violent,” the source said.
Another witness disclosed that the crisis started shortly before the announcement of results for one of the federal constituencies.
“They were about to announce the result when someone received a phone call directing that the process should stop. Initially, many thought the instruction came from the governor, but later it was alleged that it came from another influential government figure,” the eyewitness explained.
The witness further alleged that youths were mobilised from different wards to disrupt the exercise, creating panic and fear within the secretariat.
Despite the chaos, the chairman of the election committee later released the final results in the early hours of Monday.
As of the time of filing this report, the APC leadership in Ondo State had yet to officially comment on the incident.
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