• Ooni warns against rigging at Ekiti guber
Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti
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 in order to manipulate the poll in favour of the APC candidate, Dr. Kayode Fayemi. The governor also said the criminal act is allegedly 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 was the consequence of the ghost of the federal government-backed 2014 poll he allegedly committed against the people of the state. He also said 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 menace 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, yesterday, 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.
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.
“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 candidateâ€, he added.
Meanwhile, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, yesterday warned politicians against misuse of power and resort to rigging in the July 14 governorship election.
The monarch said the election should not be conducted under the atmosphere of war, saying Yoruba should resist attempt to set them against each other over elections.
The monarch spoke in Ekiti State University during the 23rd convocation ceremonies of the university, where he bagged Doctor of
Public Administration (honoris causa) of the institution.
Others, who bagged similar award were: the former Registrar of West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and that of University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University, Chief Alex Ajayi, Mr. Abiodun Adedapo, Dr. Olasehinde Olatunji, Mr. Israel Ovirih and Dr. Falil Ayo Abina, are to be honoured with Doctor of Public Administration, Doctor of Finance, Doctor of Public Administration and Doctor of Economics, respectively.
The wives of the Governor of Ekiti State, Mrs. Feyisetan Fayose and that of the Deputy Governor, Mrs. Janet Olusola, bagged Masters Degrees in Guidance and Counseling of the University.
Oba Ogunwusi said power belongs to God and that time has come for Ekiti to display its homogeneity by electing Fayose’s successor through a peaceful ad credible poll.
He said the award would motivate him to do more for the university, saying he was committed to be part of any initiative put in place by the management to move the institution forward.
The Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof Samuel Oye Bandele, said the university had decided to jack up its Internally Generated revenue as a way of shoring up infrastructural development necessitated by poor funding from the government.
Bandele said the university is making good exploits in bakery, block making and other ventures that can impact positively on the university and the Ekiti community.
