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The governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Osun State, Najeem Salaam, has raised concerns over the alleged exclusion of his party’s agents from polling areas during Saturday’s governorship election.
Salaam, who arrived at his polling unit and cast his ballot at about 10:39 a.m., said he received reports that ADC agents were not being recognised at several polling locations despite the party having uploaded their details ahead of the election.
According to the candidate, the alleged exclusion affected areas across 10 local government areas in the state. He said the party had reported the matter to the relevant authorities, who were looking into the complaints.
Salaam said the presence and recognition of accredited party agents were important to ensuring transparency in the electoral process and giving political parties confidence in the conduct of the poll.
The ADC candidate also rejected allegations that his party was involved in vote buying, insisting that its campaign was based on presenting its programmes to voters rather than attempting to influence their choices with money.
“We converse with the people, we let them know our programmes, and that is exactly what we do. Vote buying is out of it. I have never in my life bought votes,” Salaam said.
He said voters should be allowed to freely determine who would govern the state, stressing that the election should provide citizens with a fair opportunity to choose their preferred candidate.
“People will decide whom they want, and I think it should be fair enough for them to have the right to choose whom they prefer as a candidate or as the governor of the state,” he said.
Salaam, who voted at Ward 4, expressed confidence in his chances of winning the election, attributing his optimism to his faith and the support of Osun voters.
