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Eleka wins PDP primary as APC holds fresh election in Ekiti Friday

By Adamu Abuh (Abuja) and Ayodele Afolabi (Ado Ekiti )
09 May 2018   |   4:22 am
Professor Kolapo Olusola Eleka, deputy governor of Ekiti State, has won the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the July 14 governorship election.

Ekiti governor, Ayo Fayose and Deputy Governor, Prof. Kolapo Olusola

Professor Kolapo Olusola Eleka, deputy governor of Ekiti State, has won the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the July 14 governorship election.

Eleka is the preferred candidate of Ayodele Fayose, governor of the state.

Out of the 1,968 votes, Eleka scored 1,191, while Prince Adedayo Adeyeye got 770 votes and seven votes were voided.

Abiodun Olujimi stepped down for the former Minister of State for Work, Prince Dayo Adeyeye.

This is as the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) cancelled last Saturday’s gubernatorial primary election in Ekiti State.

Spokesperson of the Party, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi who briefed the media after a closed-door meeting by the Chief John Odigie-Oyegun led National Working Committee (NWC) disclosed that fresh primary would now hold on Friday, May 11 this week.

The party also bared the secretary of the primary electoral committee as well as the agents of aspirants identified to have disrupted the process from further participating in the primary election in whatever capacity.

Nevertheless, he said Governor Tanko Al-Makura and other members of the primaries committee would handle the exercise.

His words: “The existing primary election committee is maintained, except the secretary who will now be substituted.  Virtually all aspirants complained that the secretary has a close relationship with one of their colleagues and so we decided to drop him in order to guard the integrity of the process and not because he was found to have compromised.

“All identified unruly agents that participated in the suspended primary election of 5th May 2018 are disqualified from participating in the rescheduled primary as agents. ‘’

Accordingly, the following individuals are hereby disqualified from participating as agents or partaking in the rescheduled primary in whatever capacity; Ayodeji Omowaye, Rotimi Faleye, Kayode Afolabi, Oladele Ademola Samuel, Oyetunde Ojo, Akintade Olayisade and Temitope Adewumi.

“All agent tags must bear the name of aspirants they represent. All agents in the rescheduled primary election are hereby barred from coming to the voting arena with their mobile phones”.

Other decisions reached by the NWC are: “Security agents from other states will be mobilised to secure the venue and officials in the rescheduled election. One person would be appointed subject to the consensus of all aspirants to assist persons with disability and illiterate voters. All aspirants must not leave their sitting position unless with the approval of the primary committee

“All aspirants would be held vicariously liable for the conduct of their agents. Names of the following aspirants would now be written in the following order as stated below: Ajayi Olatunji Olowo and Olubunmi Kayode.

“The NWC condemn the disruptlon of the Primary of 5th May and resolved that all found culpable, directly or indirectly will be punished in accordance with the relevant provisions of the party constitution”.

Meanwhile, one of the governorship aspirants in the PDP primary, and Senator representing the Ekiti South in the Senate, Abiodun Olujimi has stepped down for the former Minister of State for Work, Prince Dayo Adeyeye.

Before her decision to step down, accreditation of delegates was already being conducted from a building opposite the Eagle Hall venue of the primary election.
Olujimi, whose action elicits a loud applause, said she decided to collapse her structure for Adeyeye for the progress of the party.

Immediately, the leader of Governorship Primary of PDP in Ekiti state and governor of Delta state, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, asked Senator Olujimi and her agent to step down from the stage.

He said that her withdrawal had reduced the aspirants to two, noting that 1, 966 delegates are voting to elect the party’s flag bearer.

Addressing delegates before the commencement of voting, the governor promised that his team would organise free, fair and credible primary for the party.

He however, disallowed former members of the state working committee from voting when they filed out to vote thereby allowing only 28 present executive members to vote.

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