…Fayemi, Fayose, Digruntled Aspirants Hold Ace The battle for who replaces incumbent Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, is now drawn between the Candidate of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), Mr Biodun Oyebanji and the Candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Bisi Kolawole in the governorship election slated for June 18 this
…Fayemi, Fayose, Digruntled Aspirants Hold Ace
The battle for who replaces incumbent Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, is now drawn between the Candidate of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), Mr Biodun Oyebanji and the Candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Bisi Kolawole in the governorship election slated for June 18 this year.
What happens with the primaries of other fringe parties will be a non event as their combined votes in previous elections have been too insignificant to upstage the APC and PDP which have always coasted home with 95 per cent of total votes.
With almost a thin line separating the strength of the two leading parties, haven governed the state since 1999 in an exchange of baton, it may be difficult to predict where the pendulum will swing.
No doubt however, the out-going Governor, Fayemi, his immediate predecessor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, who both wield considerable leverage on the structures of their respective parties and aspirants who lost out at the primaries, hold the ace in the Ekiti State governorship election.
Analysts believe that who becomes the eventual winner between Oyebanji and Kolawole will be traded off at the table than at the ballot box as Fayemi and Fayose angle for their interests with different strokes. Like every departing Governor who crave for trusted allies to cover their tracks, Fayemi may also desire someone he can rely on to continue the policies and programmes of his government. On the other hand, Fayose’s interest could be how his protege can get some soft landing from his on-going Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) case. How this will play out will be seen in the coming weeks.
Oyebanji, said to be backed by Fayemi, won the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship primary on Thursday. A former secretary to the state government (SSG), Oyebanji defeated other aspirants to emerge winner.
He polled 101,703 votes, while his closest challengers; Ojo Kayode had 767, leaving Senators Opeyemi Bamidele and Dayo Adeyeye with 760 and 691 votes respectively.
The result was announced by Mohammed Badaru, Jigawa state governor and chairman of the primary election committee.
A member of the Afenifere Renewal Group, Oyebanji will be the APC’s standard-bearer in the governorship election to be conducted on June 18 by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The APC governorship candidate is an experienced public administrator who has served in at least three governments since Ekiti was created in 1996 by the late Sani Abacha.
Oyebanji, who’s also close to the grassroots haven schooled and worked in the state, served as the special adviser on parliamentary affairs in the administration of Governor Niyi Adebayo. He was also chief of staff to Fayemi, the incumbent Governor, in his first term. Oyebanji is regarded as the fulcrum of the government of Fayemi and Adebayo.
The outcome of the APC primary has not gone down well with Bamidele, one of the foot men of former Lagos helmsman, Mr. Bola Ahmed Tinubu who’s rooting for the cancellation of the primary election.
The Senator representing Ekiti Central alleged that the primary election committee was peopled by aides of Fayemi, who he said worked to ensure that Oyebanji got the APC ticket. Seven other governorship aspirants joined Bamidele to reject the processes that threw up the victor. The other protestants are Kayode Mojo, Demola Popoola, Femi Bamisile, Bamidele Faparusi, Dayo Adeyeye and Afolabi Oluwasola
Despite their calls for cancellation, the Ekiti chapter of the APC accepted the exercise as “free, fair and credible”. According to the organisers, there was a level-playing field for all aspirants.
Biodun Oyebanji polled 101,703 votes, to defeat his closest challengers; Ojo Kayode who had 767. Tinubu’s loyalist, Opeyemi Bamidele came third with 760 votes, while Dayo Adeyeye polled 691 votes. Bamidele Faparusi, 376; Femi Bamisile, 400; Demola Popoola, 239; Olushola Afolabi came from the rear with 47.
Earlier, chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Primary Election Committee for Ekiti and Governor of Jigawa State, Abubakar Badaru, has said party members who would vote in the primary election across 177 wards in the state would queue behind their preferred aspirant’s poster.
Badaru said that the stakeholders and aspirants had resolved that only members with valid membership cards as well as voter cards would be allowed to participate in the exercise.
The committee chairman, who spoke in Ado Ekiti during a stakeholders’ meeting attended by aspirants and party leaders, assured of “free, fair and credible primary,” saying no aspirant would be cheated in the exercise.
Aspirants in attendance were National Assembly member, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele; former Minister of Works, Senator Dayo Adeyeye; House of Representatives member, Femi Bamisile; former Secretary to the State Government, Biodun Oyebanji; former House of Representatives member, Bamidele Faparusi; former governorship aspirant, Kayode Ojo; and Oluwasola Afolabi.
Badaru, who said the committee had instruction to adopt Option A4 direct primary, said: “The party has a guideline in the conduct of direct primary, which is the accreditation of party members after getting their voter cards and party membership slips carrying their photographs and their names.
“After this is done, the members would now queue behind the agents of their preferred aspirants in each ward before counting. It is whatever that is counted across the wards and acceptable to all agents that will be collated and announced accordingly.
Badaru directed each aspirant to nominate 20 persons that would work with the committee as local organising committee in the collation and transmission of results, saying he adopted the modality to make the process more credible and acceptable.
Also, an ally of Mr Ayodele Fayose, former Governor of Ekiti State, Mr Bisi Kolawole, was declared winner of the primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held on Wednesday. He’s also to fly the party’s flag in the June 18 governorship election in the state.
Kolawole, former chairman of the PDP in Ekiti, edged out former Governor, Mr Segun Oni and Prof. Kolapo Olusola Eleko, a former Deputy Governor of the state.
Other aspirants who contested the primary are Senator Biodun Olujimi, Yinka Akerele, Deji Ogunsakin, Lateef Ajijola, Wale Aribisala, Ayodeji Kazeem, Kayode Adaramodu and Wale Aribisala.
Olujimi, the senator representing Ekiti South, earlier pulled out of the shadow election, citing alleged manipulation of delegates’ list in favour of a particular aspirant.
The delegates first converged on Pastoral Centre in Ado-Ekiti to get accredited, after which they moved to Great Eagle Hall for the voting.
Kolawole was declared winner by the chairman, electoral committee of the party, Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State. He said Kolawole won having scored the highest number of votes cast.
According to him, Kolawole scored a total of 671 votes to defeat his closest rival, Oni, who polled 330 votes.
Other highlights of the poll included void votes, 13; Adekemi Adewumi, one; Biodun Olujimi, two; Lateef Ajijola, one; Ayodeji Kazeem, six; Kayode Adaramodu, 10; Kolapo Olusola, 93 and Adewale Aribisala, 56.
Addressing journalists, Governor Udom appreciated party members for their display of maturity and cooperation, which led to the success of the poll.
He noted that the election was transparent and devoid of any manipulation, and called on the winner to be magnanimous in victory, while those who lost should be strong in defeat.
Kolawole had resigned his position as Ekiti PDP chairman to contest the governorship election. A former lawmaker representing Efon constituency in the state House of Assembly, Kolawole also served as Commissioner of Environment between 2015 and 2018.
While endorsing Kolawole for the governorship election, Fayose had described him as a bridge-builder who will usher in a better future for Ekiti and the PDP.
“The man you have come to honour, Bisi Kolawole, is our collective project. I made him my preferred candidate in the overall interest of our party, but this does not foreclose due process of nomination in PDP,” Fayose said.
Just like the APC aspirants who lost out that are now sulking, the PDP aspirants particularly those who were bruised may play the role of spoilers if they are not appeased.
One of the aspirants, Mrs Cecilia Ebiesuwa, who was bullied out of the venue of the PDP primary told the Nigerian Democratic Report (NDR) that the event was far from being democratic.
“It was serious oooooo! I was bullied yesterday and maltreated to a level that Governor Udom ordered a police man to shoot at me because I insisted that the right thing must be done. The delegates list was doctored, my name was missing, it was replaced with somebody’s name. It was so strange to me. Na only God get power ooooo!
“His Excellency Chief Udom Emmanuel refused me a copy of the list. My name was no 10 on the initial aspirants list, but when accreditation started, another name was on mine. I insisted this must be corrected, hummmm that was my offence oooooo! You needed to see what happened yesterday.
“Some thugs were on a top gear, ready to kill or win, they hit me on my right thigh which was bruised. Olujimi left the accreditation point in annoyance, her name was even omitted from the aspirants list but re-appeared on the automatic delegates list. A close ally of Segun Oni’s camp, Princess Adesoye Adegoke was equally bullied while her phone was broken in the process. Another of their supporter, Mrs Asaolu Modupe simply opted to stay away,” she narrated.
