The lawmaker representing Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency of Oyo State at the House of Representatives, Anthony Adepoju, has said that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, is trying to go against the will of Nigerians.

Adepoju made this remark on Tuesday during an interview on Arise Television monitored by DAILY POST.

He was reacting to the retention of the manual transmission of election results by the National Assembly.

DAILY POST reports that Proceedings in the House of Representatives turned rowdy on Tuesday as lawmakers disagreed over a motion seeking to rescind the passage of the Electoral Act Amendment bill.

This was before the green chamber ended in a dramatic U-turn as lawmakers of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and their opposition counterparts clashed over the mode of transmitting election results ahead of the 2027 general elections

Reacting, Adepoju who is the Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Federal Character Commission said, “We want Nigeria to have trust in our democracy and elect the leaders that they want.

“What played out in the National Assembly is the APC trying to go against what Nigerians want.

“I think Nigerians all saw what happened at the floor of the House. It was definitely not bi-partisan.

“What happened I can tell you was nothing short of a rape of our democracy. This is something we have worked hard for since 1999.

“And if we at this point of our democracy can be thinking of having elections that may not be free and fair, then it’s a big shame.”

Dele Momodu, publisher of Ovation magazine and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, has urged former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George to stop harbouring what he described as anti-Atiku sentiments, insisting that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has a legitimate right to pursue his presidential ambition.

Momodu made the call in a post on X on Friday while reacting to a video interview in which George criticised Atiku for allegedly placing his personal ambition above party interests.

Atiku and George were previously members of the Peoples Democratic Party before the former VP defected to the ADC.

In the interview, conducted in Yoruba, George openly faulted Atiku’s continued presidential bid.

“There’s someone who has been bragging so much, and whom I pity so much,” George said.

“Despite elder statesmen’s efforts to make peace reign, this person insists that it’s his ambition. He keeps insisting he would run, but is his ambition greater than that of Nigeria’s?

When asked if he was referring to Nyesom Wike, he replied: “I am referring to Atiku Abubakar. He is insisting to be ADC’s flag-bearer for the presidential elections. It’s his problem; let him go ahead. Isn’t it why he left the PDP in the first place?”

Reacting, Momodu appealed to the PDP chieftain to moderate his position and allow Atiku to pursue his political goals without hostility.

“Baba mi Sir, you know I love and respect you a lot, kindly purge yourself of anti-ATIKU sentiments,” Momodu wrote.

“It is his right to contest, Sir, while it is your right not to support him. ATIKU has never bragged to anyone about his political dreams. Never,” he added.

He further argued that Atiku’s decision to leave the PDP was influenced by internal party tensions, blaming the influence of Wike on the party’s internal stability.

“Atiku knew PDP was going to collapse under the suffocating grip of Nyesom Wike who you once supported, before joining the Goodluck Jonathan re-election movement,” Momodu said.

He added that Atiku was now better positioned to read the political landscape, stressing that democratic participation should not be restricted.

“Democracy is about the freedom to choose and the liberty to reject at the polls,” Momodu wrote. “Please, let Atiku breathe, sir.”