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VIDEO: Allegations of Underage Voter Mobilization and Cash Promises Surface in Ekiti Election
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has faced allegations of mobilizing underage voters in support of its candidate, Governor Biodun Oyebanji, in the ongoing Ekiti State governorship election. Reports indicate that the party, allegedly cooperating with certain parents, facilitated the registration of teenagers for voter cards by promising financial compensation in exchange for their ballots.
In one documented case, a teenage boy from a local village revealed that his mother instructed him to cast his ballot for the incumbent governor. According to the teenager, party agents explicitly promised a monetary payout following the submission of his vote, though he was uncertain of the exact amount. Local sources suggest that a significant portion of residents in the teenager’s village had subscribed to the alleged incentive scheme.
The controversy unfolds as voting progresses across the state’s 16 local government areas, where a total of 1,059,360 registered voters are expected to decide the state’s leadership for the next four years. The election spans 2,445 polling units across 177 wards, with candidates from 10 political parties contesting the race.
Ahead of the exercise, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) confirmed the successful distribution of all sensitive and non-sensitive materials from its designated Registration Area Centres. While voters turned out in large numbers including at Governor Oyebanji’s hometown polling units in Ikogosi these fresh allegations of voter manipulation have raised concerns, despite INEC’s repeated assurances of a credible, free, and fair electoral process.
