Senator Dino Melaye, spokesperson for the Atiku‑Okowa Presidential Campaign Council, claimed that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) spent over N400 billion on the presidential election, which he described as “a caricature show.” He made the allegation in a video obtained by The [publication] on Monday night. In the one‑minute‑45‑second clip, Melaye also said that the redesign of the naira was a deception orchestrated by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
His remarks came hours after PDP leaders, including Senator Iyorchia Ayu, stormed INEC’s headquarters to protest the declaration of All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Bola Tinubu as president‑elect following the February 25, 2023 elections. The Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party and New Nigeria Peoples Party rejected the results, citing violence, rigging and a lack of integrity, particularly the failure to upload presidential results on the iRev portal in real time on Election Day. They called for the election’s cancellation and lamented the irregularities recorded during the voting process.
Melaye further asserted that “to make sure that the mandate of the people given freely to Atiku Abubakar is retrieved, we spent over N400 billion just for a caricature show. INEC deceived Nigerians.” Regarding the naira redesign, he alleged that “because money was given to Bola Tinubu, the APC shared new notes on Election Day across the country while the PDP was starved of funds.” He characterized the redesign as a ploy by INEC to deceive Nigerians and urged all PDP supporters and lovers of democracy nationwide not to allow this situation to stand.
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