Atiku Abubakar accuses APC of training operatives in China to manipulate card readers during election

Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has spoken about what he descrbed as a plot of the All Progressives Congress (APC) ''to slow down card readers in regions considered his strongholds.''

Atiku stated this on Tuesday at an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting at Wadata Plaza, national secretariat of the party.

According to the him, some people were trained in China and are equipped with gadgets that look like mobile phones.

He said the gadgets will be used to slow down card readers in his strongholds and fasten them in other regions.

He said the plan is to slow the card readers in North-central, South-south and South-east, but to increase the rate of operation of the card readers in the North-west and North-east.

“We have just discovered that the APC have hired many of their operatives and have taken them to China to be trained, and they have been so trained, and they are back, and they are equipped with devices that are meant to slow or fasten our card readers,” he said.

So, if you are in the South-south, South-east and North-central, you are likely to get your card readers to be slowed by those APC operatives.”

Mr Abubakar also claimed that his party has seen the machines; and has interviewed some of those who have gone on the training.

“If you are from the North-west or North-east, the tendency is that they will use these machines to fast-track the readings of your card readers so that many of their supporters can vote while disenfranchising the other three zones.” he said

“I thought you should know that we have supplied the information to the campaign council, and you will even see the copy of the machine which each and every one of those operatives is to hold. It is like a telephone but that is its job. I felt I should let you know, and you should be guided accordingly.” he added

Mr Abubakar’s allegations come a few days to Saturday’s presidential and National Assembly elections.