* Fayemi: Gov’s conscience is pricking him over 2014 election fraud
Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti
The Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) of colluding to preload card readers to be used for the July 14 governorship election in the state with a view to manipulating the poll in favour of the APC candidate, Dr Kayode Fayemi.
The governor also said the criminal act is being perpetrated in Akure, Ondo State in collaboration with the Ondo State Government.
Meanwhile, the Director of Media and Publicity of the Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation, Wole Olujobi, said Fayose’s allegation is the consequence of the ghost of the federal government-backed 2014 poll he allegedly committed against the people of the state.
He also said that Fayose’s declaration that the shooting of opposition members has just begun is a confirmation of the allegation that the governor has imported gunmen to Ekiti State to kill APC members and harass members of the public.
Fayose stated this on Friday night while answering questions on a radio and television programme in Ado-Ekiti called “Governor Explains.”
In a statement by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr Idowu Adelusi, on Saturday, he quoted the governor as saying that over 550 polling units spread across the state were targeted to be preloaded with between 50 and 200 votes in favour of the APC.
“I don’t want to bring this picture out yet, but those who said preloading is not possible are lying. Right now, they are doing manual preloading in Akure as I speak. For polling units with over 1,000 voters, they spread the preloading to between 50 and 200 votes per polling unit. In Ikere, 58 of such polling units were targeted and Ado-Ekiti has 158 of such polling units.
“They want to get people they will stuff with the ballot papers and dump such papers in the ballot boxes at such polling units.
“They are also printing fake voter cards in Akure with support from the Ondo State Government. They are also working to bring in about 14,000 people from Ondo State to come and vote here. They have already issued fake 7,000 voter cards and they are daily printing this. They promised to give each person N15,000 if they help them stuff ballot boxes with fake ballot papers they are printing,” he said.
He therefore urged the people of the state to be vigilant during the election and challenge any strange face they see.
Fayemi, who refuted the allegation, said: “We are not surprised that conscience, for the first time, is pricking Fayose over his
unprecedented, historic and historical 2014 poll fraud criminally masterminded by him to win that election.
“All Nigerians and indeed peoples of the world heard how Fayose led top PDP members backed by the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration to criminally manipulate the electoral process that returned him to power.
“That experience is now haunting Fayose, who believes that President Muhammadu Buhari is also a crime-inclined president who will take his pound of flesh for the 2014 election heist that returned Fayose to power.
“All over the world, Fayose’s voice was heard on the popular Capt Sagir Koli’s audio tape harassing a Major General of the Nigerian Army and forcing him to carry out his orders to assist him in the manipulation of the electoral process through illegal arrests and intimidation of the opposition to enable him win the election.
“Fayose’s voice was heard in the audio tape talking about how he collected sensitive copies of INEC materials that he said he printed to win the election.
“In the same audio tape, he spoke about how he collated election results in Efon-Alaaye on Thursday 19, 2014, two clear days before the June 21, 2014 election.
“PDP state secretary, Dr Tope Aluko (TK), corroborated Fayose in an affidavit contained in his statement to security agencies detailing how Fayose compromised INEC, including concocting the election results two days before the election.
“Now, Fayose is seeing Buhari and Fayemi in his own image as a man who cannot survive in a society where the law works, thus becoming restless that APC will also criminally manipulate the electoral process to secure victory for the APC candidate.”