Joseph Odok|4 November 2017
Aspirants to the positions of chairmen and councilors in Cross River State local government elections on the platform of People’s Democratic Party, PDP have been scammed by the party.
According to the aspirants, on Wednesday, 26th October, they got information from the party that the sale of intent forms for the local government elections has begun and would last for three days, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. To beat the deadline, they all rushed to the party where they were made to cough out the sums of 120,000 naira for councillorship aspirants and 530, 000 for chairmen in the name of procuring intent forms for the conduct of party primary for the local government elections in the state.
They text messages were sent to them from the party and social media informing them to rush to the party to purchase the intent forms as the state governor had given the nod for the elections which were suspended in June would take place in December.
‘We got messages on Wednesday last week that the sale of intent forms for nomination for the positions of councilors and chairmen had begun and would end on Saturday at 2.00 pm so all the aspirants who did not buy the forms in June rushed to the party to seek for information on how to procure the forms”, One aspirant who prefers anonymity.
He said at the party, they were told by the Financial Secretary of the party to pay the sum of 100,000 for those contesting as councilors and 500,000 for those contesting as chairmen to any of the party’s five designated bank accounts and thereafter return to the party to pay to the financial secretary the sums of 20,000 for councilors and 30,000 for chairmen as the cost for processing the forms.
He said many people rushed to the designated banks to pay and brought back tellers in expectations that they will be given the intent forms but after paying the money requested at the party, they were told to go and wait for further information.
“We have 196 wards in the state and 18 local government areas. In some of the wards, over five persons are contesting for the post of councilor while in some councils over six persons are contesting for the post of chairman. If you multiply 120,000 for the councillorship aspirants and 530,000 from the chairmanship aspirants the money runs into tens of millions.
Our said the following Monday, they were told that there was no such thing as sale of forms for local government elections and that the aspirants acted on wrong information which did not emanate from the party.
‘We were told that the information we got was just a proposal by the party to the governor on the position of things in the party and the governor was yet to even receive the memo talk much of approving it which means the money was fraudulently collected from us”.
He said the party has not given any information as whether the money would be returned to them or not .
Mr Victor Odo, the Secretary of the Party in a memo addressed to the General Manager, Cross River Broadcasting Corporation which was announced on its airwaves stated that “The entire members of People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Cross River State and aspirants to the office of councilors and Chairmen of local government councils are informed that information making the rounds was a proposal to the leadership of the party which is yet to be approved.
“Consequently, PDP, members and aspirants are to discontinue any meeting or campaigns as CROSIEC charged with conducting local Government Elections has not come up with a time table to that effect”.
The memo was silent on the money paid into the party’s bank accounts and financial secretary and who authorised the collection of the monies which is why the aspirants see the whole saga as a scam on them
Joseph Odok
Social Change Agent
