By Kemi Kasumu, General Editor
“The story of how Fayose used the security agencies to manipulate the last election is still fresh in the memory of the people. Unfortunately for him, he has no such opportunity this time. Winning a free and fair election is a strange territory to him and that’s why he is looking stranded. It is therefore mischievous of PDP to continue to claim that the Police assaulted Fayose on Wednesday after Fayose himself has apologised to the Police authorities for lying against their officers.”
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has faulted the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) over the its claim that the government’s deployment of policemen to the Ekiti State was done to harass its supporters in Saturday’s governorship election in the state in favour of APC candidate Kayode Fayemi.
In a separate statement, National Chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, said the PDP and its Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose were afraid that the instruments that brought them to power in 2014 were going to be used at this time against them but averred that the APC was not thinking along that uncivilized way of playing electoral politics.
In a statement on Thursday, signed by APC National Publicity Secretary Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the governing Party rejected the opposition’s claim even as it justified the police deployment as in order with usual practice at elections when extra security deployment is routine to keep the peace for credible and transparent elections.
Mallam Abdullahi, who is also a former Minister of Sports and Youth Development in the country, accused Governor Fayose of contriving to make the coming election in which he is not a candidate about himself whereas, he said, it is not.
He also took a swipe at the PDP’s candidate, a professor, who cannot stand on his own but has been hiding behind Fayose’s fingers.
The APC spokesman posited therefore that reason it was not possible for Ekiti people to vote for the professor is that doing so is handing Fayose a third third.
The APC statement said: “We reject the claim by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that policemen were drafted to Ekiti State to harass PDP supporters in Saturday’sgovernorship election in favour of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship candidate, Dr. Kayode Fayemi.
“As usual with elections, extra security deployment is routine to keep the peace for credible and transparent elections.
“With PDP’s claim in its press statement, it is obvious that its leadership does not have the facts of the actual events in Ekiti State or it is deliberately attempting to divert public attention from the comical performance put up by Governor Ayodele Fayose on Wednesday, which was clearly contrived to give the impression to the public that he was being persecuted.
“Somehow, Fayose has contrived to make this election about himself. But it is not. The contest is between Dr. Fayemi and the Professor that has continued to hide behind Fayose’s fingers.
“What is clear to every voter in Ekiti is that to vote for this Professor is to hand Fayose a third term. Given their horrid experience with him, they have wisely rejected them both.
“The PDP in Ekiti have read the handwriting on the wall. They know they have lost the election. They therefore have to save their face with these wild allegations.
“The story of how Fayose used the security agencies to manipulate the last election is still fresh in the memory of the people. Unfortunately for him, he has no such opportunity this time. Winning a free and fair election is a strange territory to him and that’s why he is looking stranded.
“It is therefore mischievous of PDP to continue to claim that the Police assaulted Fayose on Wednesday after Fayose himself has apologised to the Police authorities for lying against their officers.
“The ultimate decision about who governs Ekiti lies with the people of that State, which they will make on the principle of one man one vote.”
