GOING by the pronouncement of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), 16 political parties with their candidates will be participating in the June 18 election in Ekiti State which will produce the successor of the incumbent governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi.
With the commencement of campaigns, the various candidates are crisscrossing the state, stating their plans and urging the electorate to trust them with their mandates.
Political analysts believe that the election is going to throw up some interesting situations, considering the pedigrees and popularity of the candidates.
Since the return to democratic rule in 1999, no party has won the governorship election back-to-back in the state, a development which has lent credence to what many have described as the unpredictability and sophistication of Ekiti voters.
While the All Progressives Congress (APC) will be throwing everything into the arena to break the succession jinx and remain in power, the opposition parties are strengthening their structures and perfecting their strategies to dislodge the APC ruling party.
The candidates that are going to do battle on June 18 are Biodun Oyebanji (APC), Reuben Famuyibo, Accord; Wole Oluyede (African Democratic Congress (ADC); Debo Ajayi, Young Progressives Party (YPP); Kemi Elebute-Halle, Action Democratic Party (ADP); Moses Olajide, African Action Congress (AAC), Olufemi Obidoyin, All Progressives Congress (APGA) and Peter Adegbenro, Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
Others are Segun Oni, Social Democratic Party (SDP); Bisi Kolawole, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); Modupe Olatawura, All People’s Party (APP); Daramola Roland, Labour Party (LP); Oladosu Fatomilola, New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP); Tope Iyaniwura, National Rescue Movement (NRM); Olaniyi Agboola, People’s Redemption Party (PRP) and Kolade Akinyemi, Zenith Labour Party (ZLP)
Reuben Famuyibo (Accord Party)
Regarded as one of the founding fathers of Ekiti State, the 63-year old former presidential aspirant in 1993 has carved a niche for himself in the politics of the state and the country. He was a staunch member of the APC until he dumped the party early this year over what he described as the high-handedness of the state leadership of the party. Although he is contesting under the Accord party, a platform with a relatively lower membership base, his experience and popularity across party lines could sway the votes in his favour on Election Day. An indigene of Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, the local government with the largest voting population in the state, Famuyibo would be counting on the support of his kinsmen if he is to make significant impact in the June 18 poll.
Wole Oluyede (ADC)
The Ikere-Ekiti-born medical doctor cum politician put up a strong contest in the 2018 governorship primary of the APC which was won by the incumbent governor. Having failed to realise his aspiration in the APC and given his resolve to be in the ballot for the June 18 poll, the 57-year old medical expert left the party for the ADC, whose ticket he ended up winning. Oluyede, a strong member of the South-West Agenda for Asiwaju 2023 (SWAGA), a group galvanising support for the presidential ambition of former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu, is no doubt going to be one of the candidates to look out for in the contest. Considering the agitation from his southern zone for the governorship seat, which has eluded the district since 1999, many political watchers are of thee opinion that the people of the area might queue behind his candidature to realise their longtime demand.
Kemi Elebute-Halle (ADP)
Elebute-Halle is one of the two female governorship candidates for the election. The 40-year-old engineer and philanthropist had, in the last few years, involved in series of humanitarian services to the people, especially the underprivileged in the state. At a time when stakeholders are clamouring for more female participation in politics, her candidature has received massive endorsement from the womenfolk. Her visibility through street campaigns and giant billboards in major areas in the state have so far served as a stimulus for her ambition to become the first female governor of the state.
Biodun Oyebanji (APC)
Popularly referred to as the homeboy, 54-year-old Oyebanji is certainly the candidate to beat in the June 18 election due to many obvious factors working in his favour. The immediate past secretary to the state government has had the privilege of serving under the two governors so far produced by the progressives bloc in the state – Adeniyi Adebayo and current Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment (one term) and Dr Fayemi (two terms) – in various key capacities for a cumulative period of 11 years, an experience no other contender for the governorship seat could boast of. Enjoying the full backing of the duo and coupled with the acceptability of his candidature by the majority of party members, Ekiti born politician is the candidate to beat in the contest.
Bisi Kolawole (PDP)
The 64-yearold candidate of the PDP is arguably one of the most experienced politicians in the race for the coming election. A former House of Assembly member, commissioner and party chairman, Kolawole, from Efon-Ekiti, is enjoying the full backing of former governor Ayodele Fayose who many believe is popular among the voting population. He cannot be underrated in the build-up to the poll considering his credentials, experience and the fact that he is contesting on the platform of the major opposition party with presence across the 177 wards in the state. With the support of other party leaders, the PDP candidate is in the race to win.
Segun Oni (SDP)
Oni, who ruled the state between 2007 and 2010, is running again through a third force, as his supporters call it, to return to the government house after 12 years. It is incontrovertible that the former governor enjoys high goodwill among the people of the state due to his exploits across critical sectors when he was in the saddle. Considering his political journey and attainments, it is clear that Oni has followers in the ruling and main opposition parties, which has become a bulwark for his campaign and ambition in the SDP. Ekiti and indeed the world are waiting for the political ingenuity and wizardry that Oni would bring to bear to turn the table against the APC and the dominant opposition PDP in this game.
Debo Ajayi (YPP)
Sixty-two-year-old Emure-Ekiti-born Ajayi was the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning during Fayemi’s first term between 2010 and 2014. Until the build-up to the election, when he joined the YPP to realise his ambition, he was a chieftain of the APC and was well known within the progressives fold. His exploits in the corporate world, especially finance and administration, have taken him to countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa. According to political analysts, winning the June 18 poll may be a tall order for him but his understanding of the state’s potential and how it can be turned to wealth and growth is unmatched.
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