APC Chieftain Sentenced to Jail for Vote Buying in Lagos High Court
A chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Lagos, Wahab Hammed, has been sentenced to one year in jail by the Lagos High Court in Ikeja over vote buying.
Justice Ismail Ijelu handed down the sentence after convicting Hammed on charges of conspiracy and bribery.
The court heard that on February 25, 2023, Hammed, along with another individual, conspired to corruptly pay bribes to voters during the 2023 Presidential and National Assembly Elections at Unit 28, Gbaja Girls Junior High School in Surulere.
The charges were brought under the provisions of Sections 121 (1) and (5); 121 (1) and 1 (3) of the Electoral Act 2022.
Hammed, a key figure in the APC from Surulere Local Government Area, pleaded guilty during his arraignment. The court granted an option for a N1 million fine in addition to the one-year jail term.
At the proceedings, the EFCC prosecutor, Samuel Daji, presented the facts of the case, revealing that EFCC officers received intelligence about vote buying at Polling Unit 28.
Upon investigation, Hammed was arrested with N121,000 in N500 denominations.
Daji informed the court that Hammed, when questioned, admitted to being a ward leader of APC in Unit F3 in Surulere.
He confessed that the money was provided by Hon. Segun Ijitola, a Senior Special Assistant to the Chairman of Surulere Local Government, to bribe voters for the APC.
Hammed further admitted to distributing part of the money to voters.
The court admitted Hammed’s statements and the recovered money as evidence. The prosecutor urged the court to accept the presented facts, convict the defendant, and order the forfeiture of the money.
Source: Politics Nigeria
