The candidate of the People Democratic Party, PDP, in the ongoing governorship election in Ondo State, Mr Eyitayo Jegede, SAN, has said that he would win the election irrespective of the challenges witnessed in the process of voting.Â
This was just as he said he would rather wait for the end of the poll to make a general assessment of the election, based on his experience while voting.
Jegede who voted at polling unit 009, Ward 2, Sacred Heart Primary School, in Akure South Local Government Area of the state, said this after casting his vote.
The PDP candidate, whose attempt to vote suffered a temporary setback as the card reader machine became faulty, however, waited patiently for the INEC official to fix the machine and thereafter cast his vote.Â
Speaking after voting, the SAN who is seeking to take over from a fellow SAN and incumbent Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of the All Progressive Congress (APC) noted that he stayed on the queue for two hours before he could vote.
Hear him: “As I said, we have been on the queue for the past two hours. Interestingly, it rained and the rain stopped. And then when it came to my turn to cast my vote, the machine suddenly developed a fault and we were kept on the queue for a long time. And of course, I protested, protested that I am shocked that this is happening when I was supposed to cast my vote. After waiting for some 10 minutes or thereabout, the machine suddenly woke up again and it was functioning.”Â
Asked to assess the election, the PDP candidate said: “So far, apart from that hitch at this particular polling unit, the turn out has been massive,it has been peaceful, orderly; voters have conducted themselves peacefully. The only challenge we have is from INEC and with respect to the card reader. I am aware there are pockets of violence at Ijomu area in Akure South Local Government Area and I am aware there are some incidences of what people refer to as vote-buying in some areas. I think so far, despite all the challenges, there has not been any major disruption but I do not know what is happening in the remote areas and I have not had the reports”, he said.
The senior lawyer, however, regretted the alleged violence in Owo, the hometown of Governor Akeredolu, saying: “I know that in Owo for instance, a former commissioner in the past administration led hoodlums of thugs to attack Sadiq Obaneye and injured him with some people clad in black, in a patrol vehicle, belonging to one person in Owo. And those are incidences of violence and unfortunately it is happening again in some major towns: Akure, Owo and the rest.
“And unfortunately again too, there are supposed to be some decent men who are educated also, but who are conducting themselves in very unholy and indecent manners”.Â
Jegede, nevertheless, expressed confidence that “we will still win by the grace of God”.Â
He encouraged voters to come out and vote, “notwithstanding the threat.”
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