Sophia Michaels
The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba has given approval to investigate Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun.
This comes after Abiodun was accused of using N5 billion in bank-linked vouchers to influence the outcome of the March 18 gubernatorial election.
These accusations come from a petition lodged by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun, Ladi Adebutu.
Adebutu claims that Abiodun and the All Progressives Congress (APC) engaged in vote buying, electoral violence, and voter intimidation.
Through his lawyer Ehi Uwaifoh, Adebutu further accused Abiodun of enticing voters with pre-loaded gift cards valued at N10,000 and N5,000 each.
He claims the N5 billion spent on these cards breaches the N1 billion financing limit established by the Electoral Act, 2022.
In a letter dated May 8, Idris Abubakar, the principal staff officer to the Inspector General, directed the Ogun police command to examine the governor’s alleged vote-buying scheme.
Abubakar’s letter includes a directive from the Inspector General, stating, “The inspector-general of police directs that you deal with the complaint and report findings.”
As of now, Governor Abiodun has not responded to the allegations.
In his petition, Adebutu, who is challenging the governor’s election victory at the governorship election petitions tribunal, listed 16 people allegedly involved in using armed thugs to intimidate PDP supporters and voters.
Reports suggest that these suspected APC supporters also disrupted the tribunal hearing that was reviewing the legitimacy of Abiodun’s election victory.
Adebutu has previously accused the Inspector General of Police of ignoring his complaint regarding suspected vote-buying and other electoral misconduct by the Ogun governor.
In a lawsuit, where Adebutu and nine others are being charged, the police declared that the governor candidate was at large.
See the petition below:
