- It’s not true, circumstances led to his failure – Info Commissioner
The gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the November 26, 2016 Ondo State governorship election, Eyitayo Jegede, has allegedly said that the Ondo State governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, programmed him to fail at the poll. He allegedly accused Mimiko of “contributing immensely” to his inability to win the elections, due to the governor’s failure to release funds for campaign activities.
Jegede was said to have told some party leaders, who paid him a solidarity visit last week, that Governor Mimiko did not release money for the prosecution of the election, adding that two days to the election, he had to withdraw N200 million from his personal account to fund his campaign activities.
A competent source, who pleaded anonymity, but was privy to the visit of some ward leaders of the PDP to Jegede, quoted the gubernatorial candidate as saying, “In the last election, we didn’t lose because we were unpopular or because of the series of litigations that trailed our candidature. We failed because our governor programmed us to fail.
“It would interest you to note that Governor Mimiko did not release a single kobo for the prosecution of the election, in spite of the huge funds needed for the campaign. Two days to the election, I had to withdraw N200 million from my personal account, to add to what our friends and supporters gave us.”
In the last election, we didn’t lose because we were unpopular or because of the series of litigations that trailed our candidature. We failed because our governor programmed us to fail. It would interest you to note that Governor Mimiko did not release a single kobo for the prosecution of the election
The source told The Point that apart from not releasing money for the election, Governor Mimiko’s body language pointed to the fact that he was not totally supporting Jegede. This was in spite of having singlehandedly made him the PDP candidate for the election. He accused the governor of hobnobbing with the opposition APC all through the period the PDP candidate was battling to restore his candidacy, which was stolen through the back door.
But reacting to this, the state Commissioner for Information, Kayode Akinmade, said that he would not believe that Jegede actually said that, adding that rather than Mimiko programming him to fail, circumstances surrounding the election were responsible for the outcome of the election.
Citing the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), which stipulated that a candidate’s name must be on display 30 days before an election, he said the Independent National Electoral Commission, for reasons best known to it, decided to replace Jegede’s name with Jimoh Ibrahim’s, claiming to be obeying a “strange court order, when in actual fact, there were about two other court orders to the contrary.”
“Again, for reasons best known to it, the Federal Government declared Friday, November 25, 2016 a public holiday in Ondo State. That made it extremely difficult for Jegede to campaign at all.” He added that everything was done to achieve a predetermined end by the powers that be, and therefore it would be foolhardy for anybody to now put the blame of the PDP’s failure in the election at the doorsteps of Governor Mimiko.
Another source close to the gubernatorial candidate, who also pleaded anonymity, told The Point that Jegede knew the outcome of the poll even before the election, based on the governor’s action and body language. The source said that this was evident from his countenance when Akure indigenes, under the aegis of Ooye Development Initiative paid him a solidarity visit before the election to lend their support to his aspiration.
Recall that last year, The Point had reported, exclusively, plans by Mimiko to defect to the All Progressives Congress, in anticipation of a soft landing, after the end of his tenure on February 25. It was in anticipation of the defection to the ruling APC, which won the November 26, 2016 election in the state, that the governor was said to have tacitly removed his support for his supposed candidate, Jegede.
A political analyst and commentator in the state, Ojo Oyewamide, told The Point that Jegede may not be far from the truth if he accuses Mimiko of having programmed him to fail in the last election.
He said that remained the only election where the PDP did not have any committee on ground to handle the various aspects of their campaign. He said, “It was true that the PDP did not spend money for the election.
“It is also curious that the PDP did not set up any campaign committee for the election, even when smaller parties with no hope of emerging victorious had their campaign committees in place. The APC had its own, headed by a former Speaker of the state House of Assembly and gubernatorial aspirant.” But, Akinmade declared that it was not for the party or the governor to set up a campaign committee. He said it was the responsibility of the candidate to set up his campaign committee.
He added, “But, then don’t forget that Jegede spent several weeks in court battling to sustain his candidature. Again, all PDP agents for the election were submitted to INEC by Ibrahim, who was not a member of the party. His defection to Accord Party was widely reported in the media and for INEC to then recognise him as PDP candidate, when the commission neither witnessed not participated in the primary election where he was elected, left much to be desired.
“The Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) was clear about certain procedures leading to any election, but in the case of Ondo State, the opposite was the case.”
