Scandalous! How Obanikoro, Ayo Fayose, Iyiola Omishore, the Nigerian Army, Others Rigged Fayemi Out – Full Story
SaharaReporters has received
unimpeachable documents and audio recordings providing substantial
evidence that major Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leaders planned and
successfully rigged the gubernatorial elections in Ekiti State, and
plotted a similar scenario in Osun in 2014.
The audio recordings and affidavit were
provided by Sagir Koli, a Captain in the 32nd Artillery Brigade
stationed in Ekiti State, who has since fled the country for fear of
retaliation. Capt. Koli recorded the conversation on 20th June 2014 when
he was asked to accompany his Commanding Officer, Brigadier General
Aliyu Momoh, to the meeting. The venue was held at Spotless Hotel in
Ado-Ekiti.
The audio recordings depict the meeting
as being attended by the eventual “winner” of the election, Governor Ayo
Fayose of Ekiti; Senator Iyiola Omisore; a man identified as Honorable
Abdulkareem; the Minister for Police Affairs Caleb Olubolade; and
Senator Musiliu Obanikoro who was at the time the Minister of State for
Defence. Mr. Chris Uba came to Ekiti with huge stash cash and soldiers
from the East to carry out the assignment.
The 37-minute recording details the
conversation between these men as they bribed Brigadier General Momoh
with a promotion for his assistance in carrying out election fraud in
Ekiti. In it, Obanikoro is clearly heard informing the group of men,
“[I] am not here for a tea party, am on special assignment by the
President.”
SaharaReporters further received
credible intelligence that President Goodluck Jonathan had instructed
the Chief of Defense Staff, Alex Badeh, to use the army in arresting and
intimidating opposition politicians before and during the election. The
audio recording provides exact details of the plot, with the
collaborators almost degenerating into physical combat.
Authentication of Audio Recordings and Proof of Election Fraud
The audio recordings were analyzed and
authenticated by Guardian Consulting, an independent US-based security
consulting company. According to a report authored by Guardian
Consulting, also in the possession of SaharaReporters, the independent
company used Forensic Voice Frequency Comparison technology to identify
all voices on the recording with audio available in the public domain.
The then Deputy Defense Minister,
Obanikoro clearly states to General Momoh that he was not only sent to
the meeting by President Jonathan, but “you can’t get a promotion
without me sitting on top of your military council. If I am happy
tomorrow night, the sky is your limit.”
Governor Fayose revealed that he had
already bribed an official of the Independent National Election
Commission (INEC), the non-political commission charged with organizing
elections in Nigeria, to bring copies of voter ballots with the INEC
logo to him that day. Fayose, upset that his INEC contact was caught in
traffic, narrated his day’s frustrations: “Where are we supposed to be
collating the thing INEC gave to us? Soft copies we now printed? Why is
my [INEC] contact not with [the ballots]…my contact man [was] sitting in
the check point…it took me more than two hours to get this man.”
As the plotters began to argue, Omisore,
who was running for Governor of Osun State on the PDP ticket, tried to
calm the room: “I would just say that we don’t have to argue so much, we
have seen some lapses [today] yes. It’s just this evening, there is
nothing happening now that we cannot contain before tomorrow morning.”
Plans to Rig Elections in Favor of PDP
The eyewitness testimony and sworn
affidavit by Capt. Koli corroborates the audio recordings of the PDP
officials’ plans to manipulate the Ekiti elections. The plotters devised
several plans intended to bring about an unlawful victory for PDP
candidates in Ekiti State races, including the forging of INEC ballots,
the use of the military to facilitate access for PDP operatives and
supporters, the creation of a list of APC members to be arrested, and
the deployment of a Special Team of military personnel to prevent APC
voters from reaching the polls.
The PDP officials told General Momoh
that those soldiers on election duty “must work hand-in-hand with the
PDP agents” and ordered the arrest of selected APC stalwarts as that
could “greatly assist the party during the election including DG
campaign organization for Dr. Fayemi, Mr. Bimbo Daramola,” Capt. Koli
said in his affidavit.
General Momoh, confronted with criticism
by the group, defended himself by saying that “we have done a lot of
[APC] arrests.” It would be recalled that there were arrests of APC
members in Ekiti during the period. It would also be recalled that many
members of the security offices paraded around Ekiti in disguise.
The PDP collaborators also demanded that
the military block APC members’ access to the electorate and that moles
should “be careful because the consequence will be severe.”
Soldiers were instructed set up
roadblocks leading to the polling stations and prevent APC supporters’
access. Additionally, vehicles and individuals with a special sticker
labeled “National Security Task” were allowed movement anywhere, and
were only distributed to PDP agents.
General Momoh informed the group that
there were “about 6 special teams. I have one strike force. I have
almost forty soldiers after deployment,” evidently an organized system
being used to manipulate voter turnout.
Capt. Koli’s statement explained that
based on these strategies, “they succeeded in rigging the Ekiti State
election with victory in all the 16 Local Governing Authorities (LGAs).
These really inspired them and they were with the euphoria that same
would happen in Osun State.”
Indeed, leading into the Osun State
elections the Brigadier General posted there was told to take a
three-week leave during the elections. His position was temporarily
filled by General Momoh, who then repeated the same fraudulent tactics
in Osun.
Retaliation Against Captain Sagir Koli
SaharaReporters was provided with additional evidence that proves the military retaliated against Capt. Koli when he released this information. Capt. Koli fled before he was arrested, but the military arrested, secretly detained, and chained his brother Adamu to a bed for nearly five months at the Adekunle Fanjuyi’s Cantonment.
SaharaReporters was provided with additional evidence that proves the military retaliated against Capt. Koli when he released this information. Capt. Koli fled before he was arrested, but the military arrested, secretly detained, and chained his brother Adamu to a bed for nearly five months at the Adekunle Fanjuyi’s Cantonment.
In an exclusive phone interview with
from his hideout outside Nigeria, Capt. Koli told SaharaReporters that
his brother was starved for periods of time and sometimes “fed worms.”
Adamu was only released after a petition, which is also in possession of
SaharaReporters, was submitted to the National Human Rights Commission
by Barrister Chief K. Akinola Ajayi.
The treatment of Capt. Koli’s brother
was so poor during his illegal confinement that he had to be
hospitalized due to malnutrition.
SaharaReporters contacted Nigerian
Defense spokesperson, General Chris Olukolade as well as Nigerian Army
spokesperson, Col. SK Usman, for comment on this story. Both officials
promised to get back to us but never did.
Listen to recording:>> How Ayo Fayose, Obanikoro, Omishore and the military Rigged Ekiti – Sahara Reporters
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