“Let our vote count,” said Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Seun Osamaye.
Women and youth leaders in the Ondo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) staged a peaceful protest over the alleged imposition of candidates for the National Assembly on Monday. The protest halted vehicular movement on the Ilesha-Akure-Benin expressway.
The protesters were carrying placards with inscriptions such as: “Let our vote count”, “We say no to imposition”, “We say no to corner corner”, “APC NWC, let our vote count”, among others.
The protesters stated that the purported list of candidates in circulation does not reflect the results of the state’s national assembly primaries held in May. They alleged that the names released did not reflect the outcome of the primaries conducted across the state.
The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Seun Osamaye, while addressing reporters during the protest, said the women were dissatisfied with what she described as a list that did not reflect the outcome of the party’s primaries. Mrs Osamaye said the women voted in all 203 wards across the state and expected the published list of candidates to reflect the mandate freely given by party members.
"We know those we voted for and those who won at the polls. The list circulating online does not reflect our members’ mandate. We are demanding fairness, transparency and justice. Let the people’s votes count,” she said.
The APC Women Leader in the state, Oluwayemisi Iji-Ayeola, also spoke at the protest. She alleged that the names released did not reflect the outcome of the primaries conducted across the state.
“We are crying against injustice. We had what we considered a credible election and expected the results to be announced accordingly. Instead, names of people we did not vote for were announced,” she said.
Ms Iji-Ayeola said the party leadership in the state had made several representations to the national secretariat, urging it to release what she described as the genuine election results.
"We have copies of the results from the ward, local government and state levels. We are appealing to the national leadership of the party to release the authentic results in the interest of justice and fairness,” she said.
The protest, which was led by women, showed the party's internal democratic process is not being respected as the results of the primaries held in May are being allegedly ignored.
The APC's internal democracy is crucial for its survival and success in the country's electoral processes. However, with this protest, it's clear that the party's internal processes are being undermined.
The protest was a peaceful move to defend the integrity of the party's internal democratic process. However, the protest is also a call for action from the party's leadership to uphold the democratic process and ensure that the candidates elected during the primaries represent the people's mandate.
The APC women are demanding that the party's leadership release the authentic results of the primaries held in May. However, it's not clear if this demand will be met.
The protest was led by women, and this is a significant move. Women have been playing a crucial role in the APC, and their leadership in this protest shows their commitment to the party and its democratic process.
The APC's leadership must listen to the women's protest and take action to uphold the democratic process. This is in the best interest of the party and its members.