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…As gov personally supervises party primaries amid tight security inside Government Office
From: WOLE BALOGUN, Ado-Ekiti
Governor of Ekiti State and Chairman of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP)’ governorship Forum, Ayodele Fayose, and the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Dayo Adeyeye, on Wednesday, disagreed over the Option A 4 adopted by the party in the state for the on-going primaries for the December Local Government Areas election in the state.
The option A4 is a free, fair and open electoral system where party members openly elect their candidate for positions of chairmen and councillors and the candidate with highest number of members clinches the party’s ticket.
Making good his promise, Governor Fayose supervised the primaries at the Osuntokun hall of the Government House, on Wednesday,
At the primaries, candidates for Oye, Ise-Orun and Ilemeje emerged in an open and transparent manner.
While the teeming crowd of party members that participated in the primaries yesterday lauded the governor’s choice of Option A4, Adeyeye faulted it. Speaking through Niyi Ojo, Director of Media and Publicity, Prince Adedayo Adeyeye Movement (PAAM), Adeyeye alleged that Fayose was putting the party in his pocket by making the primaries to hold inside the government house with the option A 4.
“The primaries elections to elect the candidates for councillorship and Chairmanship of various local government commenced yesterday at the Ekiti State Government House instead of the various wards and local governments respectively. The Governor is the electoral officer for the exercise. The Governor adopted option A4 method that attracted a lot of people without any arrangement for accommodation of the delegates.
Expressing his satisfaction for the process, Govenor Fayose explained the the primaries had to hold in a secured place such as the government office where “No miscreant would disrupt the process and no fake party member would show his face. We have been hearing threats that some people would distrupt the process, hence this has to hold here.”
Faysoe also said the system would also give room for the most popular candidates to win.
In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, on Wednesday, the governor was quoted as saying that Option A4 would also help reduce acrimony as whoever loses would know he lost in a free and fair process.
“We want a transparent process to select our candidates and we don’t want to have serious issues as fallout of the exercise. If a person loses and sees that there was a level playing field, his complaints and grievances would be minimal.
” To ensure fairness in accreditation of those to vote, you have to come with your party membership card and voter card. Apart from that, party executive in each ward as well as aspirants are at the gate to identify voters before they come in. Any situation those people cannot identify a voter as being a member of their wards, such a person is not allowed in,” he said.
Option A4 is an electoral system made popular during the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida where voters would openly queue behind their preferred candidates.
On the decision by the opposition All Progressives Congress to take part in the December 23, 2017 poll, Fayose said it was welcomed, though he added that the party was up to some mischiefs.
He gave the assurance that the main poll would also be free and fair.
Councillors and chairmanship aspirants from Ado, Ikere, Irepodun/Ifelodun and Ekiti South-West local government areas have been attended to.
A statement by the party’s State Publicity Secretary, Mr Jackson Adebayo, said they were disqualified for gross misconduct.
The party said those interested in contesting should collect the nomination form before Friday and pay the mandatory fees.
He added that a date for the primary would be communicated to them.
Condemning the process further, Adeyeye said: “The national leadership of our great party should quickly come to the rescue of the party in Ekiti State before Governor Fayose destroy the
party. In the first instance, Mr Governor created his own constitution by fixing the maximum age for Chairmanship candidate at 50 years while maximum
age for councillorship candidate at 30 years against the provisions of
Nigerian Constitution. There is nowhere in the constitution that stipulates maximum age for any elective position.
Furthermore, We hereby call on the national leadership of PDP to quickly wade into the situation before it degenerates further into another round of crisis.
Governor Fayose is not the owner of PDP but only privileged to be a sitting
Governor at this time.. We appeal to our party people that have been
subjected to all forms of dehumanizing treatment and conditions to remain
calm and be loyal to the party. A new rain will fall, its cloud already
gathering and it will usher in the soothing balm to calm our nerves. A newdawn is almost at hand.”
