The bid by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to elect its candidate for the July 14 governorship election in Ekiti State ended in a fiasco, on Saturday, as some agents of some aspirants disrupted the process midway.
The process had earlier been disrupted by downpour which started at about 12 noon and had lasted for about an hour, but the process had continued after the rains.
The election had continued smoothly and was coordinated until some people went into the voting area and disrupted the process, after delegates from four of the 16 local governments had voted.
One of the men had gone into the voting arena and punched the ballot boxes and threw the contents on the ground.
He was joined by two others who kicked the ballots and scattered the ballot papers, just as security operatives made attempts to bring the situation under control.
Attempts were made to continue with the election, when the committee in charge of the process instructed that the ballots be picked and returned to the boxes.
But the disruption had gained momentum and the entire Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, venue of the primary had become a ball of confusion.
Security agents arrested one of the people that disrupted the process, stripped and took him to their custody.
Trouble had started at about 5.30p.m. when some agents and members of the party complained that the process was allegedly being compromised and had alleged that some security officials were dictating to some of the delegates how they should vote.
Speaking on the incident, Director General of Babafemi Ojudu Campaign Organisation, Chief Ranti Adebisi, complained that the process had been heavily compromised.
“The guideline stipulates that each aspirant can only bring in four supporters, but Dr Kayode Fayemi brought many. His agents, including in four supporters. But Dr Kayode Fayemi brought many. His agents, including DSS personnel were issuing cards to delegates to fill when they vote for him, so that they can later come for the money he promised them,” Chief Adebisi alleged.
“I contested against Fayemi in 2007 and I know what I’m talking about. The process has been compromised. Even, Fayemi has been bragging around that he is friend to Governor Tanko Al –Makura, so we are disappointed that this could happen,” he added.
Also decrying the development, a chieftain of the party from Oye Local Government Area, Mr Segun Osunkolu, said “everything was alright and Governor Al-Makura did all that was necessary, but a particular aspirant is the cause of all that happened.”
According to him, after delegates from four local governments had voted, “but people started getting agitated for various reasons, including allegations that a policeman voted. People raised questions but nothing was really done about it and that’s when mayhem broke out.”
Osunkolu claimed that people were not happy that the Minister of Mines and Steel Development was contesting and said he could have played the role of a kingmaker and leave the governorship race for younger people.
In his reaction to the development, one of the aspirants, Mr Bimbo Daramola, said it was caused by distrust among the aspirants.
Daramola said: “I guess there’s so much of distrust among the aspirants, the agents and all of that and I believe that the promise of the Al-Makura committee is that they would give us a credible process.
“The governor of Nasarawa State has tried but election is an emotional thing and there’s nobody here who is not important. So, what happened today is an instantaneous thing. We had accreditation, statutory delegates voted, there was no issue and when some local governments started voting, there was no issue.
However, Fayemi’s agent, Mr Samuel Abejide, described the accusations as a gang-up against the Minister.
According to Abejide, the allegations “are spurious,” and contended that those “falsely accusing Fayemi of misconduct are enemies of APC.”
He said: “It was a proviso that if you are a delegate who can’t read and write, you can call any of the agents. When they saw that I was the one being called, they started feeling the heat and they were determined to disrupt it.”
Shortly after the disruption, Governor Al-Makura summoned a meeting of the 33 aspirants but did not address newsmen as he was driven out of the stadium after the exit of the aspirants.
However, some of them stated that the outcome of their meeting was that the primary election had been suspended indefinitely.
…Fayemi condemns disruption of primary by hoodlums
The Minister of Mines and Steel Development and Governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Kayode Fayemi, has condemned the disruption of the party’s governorship primary election, yesterday, in Ado Ekiti, by thugs believed to be working for some aspirants in the race.
The leading governorship aspirant says the party does not deserve the type of ridicule which the shameful act of the hoodlums had subjected it to.
The Minister, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr Yinka Oyebode, said the disruption of the primary election was the height of desperation on the part of some aspirants, who having seen defeat staring them in the face, conspired together to ensure that the exercise was not concluded.
Dr Fayemi said the aspirants resorted to violence and destruction, having realised that he was already in a clear lead in the five local governments that had cast their votes.
Dr Fayemi, who said he was not surprised by the disruption of the exercise, revealed that the security agencies had, a few days to the primary, been notified of plans by some aspirants to deploy hoodlums to disrupt the voting exercise.
He, however said that the security agencies took note of the information and promised to beef up security at the venue.
“It is quite painful seeing some desperate elements trying so much to rubbish the party we all laboured to build to national reckoning, out of share lust for power.
“Certainly the conduct of these desperate aspirants falls short of the minimum standards expected of anyone that professes progressive ideals.
“We urge our teeming supporters and loyal party members not to be discouraged by this despicable act. This surely shall pass, and better days are ahead. Our collective rescue mission has indeed begun.”
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