The member representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Sen. Shehu Sani and the newly elected senator in his place, Dr. Uba Sani have continued to trade words over the result of the poll.
Dr Sani, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, secured 355,242 votes at the just concluded poll.
The Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate, Lawal Adamu, scored 195,497 while Sani of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP), came a distant third with 70,613 votes.
Shehu Sani, in a statement he issued in Kaduna said that the polls were “characterised by ballot stuffing, thumb-printing, over-voting, outright falsification of result and vote allocation.”
He said, “In over 85 per cent of the polling units, the card readers failed and there was no due process in the use of the permanent voter cards. Bandits also ravaged Birnin Gwari, Giwa, Igabi and other rural locations. Figures were simply added to result sheets.
“Public resources were also used to massively buy votes. In fact, the National Assembly elections in Kaduna State were an industrial scale fraud. It was not a triumph of people’s will but a triumph of ‘scampish’ vote buying and manipulation.”
While calling for its outright cancellation, Sani said, “When an election is free, fair and credible, it’s morally right for those who lost to humbly congratulate those who won but when an election is rigged, those who won should only expect calls from the Courts and not from the candidate.”
He said, “As for now, No phone call and no congratulations to the fraudulent polls in Kaduna Central. Those who dope don’t deserve sportsmanship. The spirit of sportsmanship cannot be exhibited in an arena built with bricks of fraud.
“The Presidential election in Kaduna State was free, fair and credible but the National Assembly elections were deliberately manipulated to favour the unpopular candidates of the ruling party.”
Speaking with newsmen in Kaduna, yesterday, the winner of the poll, Dr. Sani, said he would be glad to meet the PRP candidate at the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal whenever he files his suit.
He added that he was even surprised that Shehu Sani, who contested on the platform of the PRP which had no structure anywhere in the state, could garner as much as 70,613 votes at the polls.
He alleged that the incumbent was rejected by the people because he turned the red chamber into a “popularity test” chamber.
