The ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, has congratulated Kayode Fayemi its candidate in the tension-soaked governorship poll of Saturday, July 14, 2018 in Ekiti State.
In an e-mailed message by its national publicity secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi on Sunday, July 15, 2018, the APC commended Dr. Fayemi, a former minister and former governor of the South Western state, for “running an effective and positive campaign” .
“The party [APC] notes that Dr. Fayemi ran an effective and positive campaign focused on his agenda of rebuilding the economy of the state and returning its lost values of integrity, prudence and decency,” Mr. Abdullahi wrote in his email.
“The party commends the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies, local and international observers, as well as other stakeholders, for their admirable role in making the Ekiti gubernatorial election one in which the people’s will has prevailed.”
The party also falsely claimed that the Ekiti electorate voted “en masse for our party’s candidate”. The reality is that it was a close race marred by voter inducement. According to observers in Ekiti, as much as N25,000 may have been paid by the APC to voters to obtain their mandate.
Fayemi got 53% of the votes (197,459) while Olusola polled 47% of the votes (178,121).
The exercise was marred by violence, allegations of voter inducement, and interference of the federal government in the process.
The PDP had complained of arrest and detention of its deputy governorship candidate and its party leaders in the state prior to the exercise.
“We thank the Ekiti electorate for voting en masse for our party’s candidate. This is a demonstration of their trust and confidence in Dr. Kayode Fayemi’s ability to deliver on his campaign promises and a rejection of the crude and pedestrian politics of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,” the statement read.
“We assure the people of Ekiti, and indeed all Nigerians, that our party is best placed to move the country forward and resolve the seemingly intractable problems that have held us back.”
