My Thoughts on Ekiti Election I was not surprised that Peter Ayodele Fayose won the election although I did not expect him to win by a landslide. Prior to the election, I had written a news report based on a research that the election was a two-horse race between Fayose and the incumbent governor, John Kayode Fayemi. The report was based on a survey conducted by my newspaper (which put Fayose a little ahead of Fayemi) as well other parametres. I must admit however, that the report suggested that INEC could call for a run-off election as there may not be a clear winner between the two leading candidates, Fayose and Fayemi. I did not give the other contestants a chance at all. Well, as we all know, Fayose is now the Governor-Elect of Ekiti. And come October 16, his tenure begins. Why would Ekiti people leave a Dr. Fayemi and vote a Mr. Fayose? I think the answers are not far-fetched. It might be true that Fayemi built infrastructure but many Ekiti indigenes do not feel the government has impacted on them personally. Ekiti is a civil service state and some of the policies of Fayemi do not seem to go well with the civil servants. For instance, he was said to have reduced the Teachers Pecuniary Allowance from 27 percent to 16 percent. Students of the Ekiti State University do not also seem pleased. The authorities of the Institution came up with the policy of no payment of tuition fees in full, no examination. This was contrary to the situation where students paid fees in instalments. Fayemi should probably have done something about this. While Fayemi may be seen as being too elitist, Fayose is indeed a grassroots man. He is a friend of okada riders, the artisans, the students, the civil servants. In short, he is loved by the ordinary people in the street. Well, it remains to be seen if Ekiti people have made a wise choice. But Ekiti people will hold themselves responsible if Fayose disappoints them. And if he performs well, they will applaud themselves. It is wonderful that Fayemi accepted the election result and swiftly congratulated Fayose. But my real relief comes when his party, the APC which was reported to have initially rejected the result, later accepted it. At least, Ekiti people can rest assured that they have been spared the probable effect of the rig and roast threat of Bola Tinubu. We Nigeria have also been spared the ordeal of the reading, listening and watching of long legal battle at the election tribunal. Now some Senior Advocates of Nigeria who may be aspiring to make some huge money from a legal battle, can start looking in other directions.
Posted on: Mon, 23 Jun 2014 09:24:24 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015