President of the Senate, David Mark

By Onwuka Nzeshi

President of the Senate, David Mark and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, have counselled the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Ondo State governorship election, Mr. Olusola Oke, to accept the victory of Governor Olusegun Mimiko, at last Saturday’s election in the interest of peace.

The duo spoke to journalists in Quebec, Canada, where they led the Nigerian delegation to the 127th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) conference.

Reacting to the results of the election, the Senate President said Oke should accept the verdict of the people of the state and avoid the temptation of embarking on a prolonged litigation at the Election Petitions Tribunal.

He said: “I believe it was a free, fair and credible election. It’s not everything we go to the Tribunal for. In this particular case, I think we should avoid the Election Petition Tribunal. Let’s not distract whoever has won the election now. Everybody in Ondo State should cooperate with the winner.

“Looking at the figures, I think it’s a true reflection of the wishes of the Ondo people and I think it was a very free, fair and credible election and having spoken to few friends back home, my personal advice is that the loser should not get into any form of litigation at all; let’s not waste time and waste resources.

“They must all come together now and work with Mimiko for the benefit of Ondo State and the people of Ondo State.”

On his part, Ihedioha corroborated Mark’s position on the election, urging public officers to work for the people at all times as there was no substitute to service and good governance.

He said what happened at the election was a reward by the people of Ondo State for the services rendered by Mimiko in the last four years.

“I believe that the result of the Ondo spoke the mind of the people. They sided with performance in office which is very vital, not only for development but also for democracy,” Ihedioha said.