Thursday, March 28, 2024

Ekiti governorship: APC delivers masterstroke, courts Adeyeye

…as party considers him for running mate

  • Fayemi, Fayose’s camps talk tough

As campaigns heat up ahead of the July 14 governorship election in Ekiti State, a former Minister of State for Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, has now become ‘a beautiful bride’ of sort, as speculations heighten that he has secretly defected to opposition All Progressives Congress, where he is to be compensated with a juicy offer.
Adeyeye, who is the immediate past National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, lost to Governor Ayo Fayose’s candidate, the Ekiti Deputy Governor, Prof. Kolapo Olusola-Eleka, in the recently conducted governorship primary of the PDP.
But Adeyeye had protested the primary, alleging that Fayose intimidated delegates, whom he allegedly clad in ‘aso ebi’ attires for identification purpose, and was strutting out himself in wild manners, to see who would dare vote against his candidate.
He said of Fayose: “He believes in gangsterism, thuggery, intimidation and coercion as a tool in politics of Ekiti, as if he is the emperor of a conquered territory. This is a governor that has rendered every party man poor by denying them of adequate party patronage and is now forcing them to do his bidding.”
In the same vein, the senator representing Ekiti South senatorial district at the National Assembly, Mrs. Abiodun Olujimi, had quickly withdrawn her candidature shortly before the conduct of the primary poll, for what her followers described as “impending danger” to her person. Afterwards, Olujimi’s supporters issued a statement condemning Fayose’s alleged “intimidation, suppression and slave-master approach to governance.”
Fayose, however, replied, saying he gave all the contestants a level-play ground, insisting that he didn’t influence the conduct of the primary.
He particularly expressed disappointment in Adeyeye, saying, “I called Prince Adeyeye twice and on each occasion, he rained curses on me and would not even listen to what I had to say. He said I should never call him again.
“I am not afraid of the curses because I know I have not done anything to warrant that or for the curses to have any effect on me,” Fayose complained.
Sources, however, revealed to our correspondent that Adeyeye had been talking with the governorship candidate of the APC, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, and was sighted on two occasions at the APC circles in Ado-Ekiti, thus reinforcing speculations that after leaving the PDP, Adeyeye may have opted for the APC
“Adeyeye had been with us on two occasions, as we are still discussing on his terms and our terms. By God’s grace, he will openly declare for the APC next week (this week) and the campaigns will become hot, knowing how strong Adeyeye is in the South senatorial district, especially in Ise, his hometown; Emure, Iluomoba, Ijan, Ode, Omuo and of course, Ikere, the hometown of Olusola-Eleka,” a leading member of the Ekiti APC said, not wanting his name published.
Another source also hinted that Adeyeye was being considered as running mate to Fayemi, following the former’s assurance of bringing his supporters from the PDP, into the APC. The source, however, said this consideration is still under wraps, since there are other party members interested in becoming the running mate.
But when contacted on phone, Adeyeye told our correspondent that he was still consulting widely among his supporters and that in due course, his next line of action would be made public.
“For now, I’m still consulting and my supporters are into various consultations with me. I rely greatly on their input. I have not taken a decision and once I do, I will let the whole world know,” he said.

STILL, APC MEMBERS BICKER
Meanwhile, the ripples generated by the last APC primary election in which Fayemi contested with 32 other aspirants are yet to subside, as some governorship aspirants who lost out at the party’s rerun primary election are still complaining.
It was gathered that members of the party who were aggrieved with the primary election that produced Fayemi had vowed not to work for his candidacy. The aggrieved members believed that Fayemi was imposed on them by some forces within the party, at both the state and federal levels.
For instance, one of the contestants in the primaries, Dr. Wole Oluyede, had warned that the chances of APC winning the governorship election was slim with Fayemi as flagbearer.
Oluyede, while referring to what transpired at the primaries, criticised a former governor of the state, Chief Adeniyi Adebayo, for allegedly promoting Fayemi’s ambition. He said, “Those who were supposed to act as leaders took sides with one candidate that will emerge, before the primaries.”
However, the leadership of the party in the state, having realised the implication of what transpired, had quickly swung into action, to appease the aggrieved members.
The leadership of the party appealed to the 32 aspirants who contested the governorship primaries but lost, to unite and defeat the PDP at the coming governorship polls.
“All the aspirants should accept the result in good faith and support Dr Fayemi to win the July 14 election. The party has finally issued a red card to the PDP government in Ekiti State and therefore, should start packing its loads of operation and corruption in Ekiti Government House,” APC’s Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, said in a statement for the party.
The state chairman of the party, Chief Jide Awe, in an exclusive chat with our correspondent, also said that other aspirants that contested the primaries with Fayemi had agreed to support him (Fayemi) after a good compromise was reached.
“The aspirants have come together to agree in supporting Fayemi. Recently, the President had a meeting with us in Abuja where he talked to other aspirants in the primaries to work for the unity of the party ahead of July 14, so that we can come out glorious, and they all agreed.”
Awe also debunked the report that the aspirants were pacified with slots if Fayemi emerges the winner of the election. “They don’t share the meat of a running antelope, until it is killed. Moreover, we don’t pacify people with slots; it is not constitutional,” he denied.
But despite the party’s efforts, political watchers said there was much for the leadership of the party to resolve, if they were truly serious to reclaim the state in July 14.

CAN PDP WIN AGAIN?
Although the PDP flagbearer in the coming election, Olusola-Eleka, will enjoy the total support of Governor Fayose who had promised to repeat his ‘16-0’ defeat of Fayemi as he did in 2014 (of how he defeated Fayemi in the 16 local government areas), political analysts have opined that Fayose will need to up his game, as circumstances are quite different, this time round.
This argument is based on the fact that the 16-0 scored by Fayose then was allegedly engineered by ‘federal might’, when PDP was the party at the federal level. They muse that now that the APC is in charge of the central government, the PDP too should be ready for ‘federal might’.
Another factor which Fayose and the PDP candidate need to pay attention to, while bracing up for the July 14 challenge, is the discord in the party.
Though Fayose seems to have played his game perfectly with how he was able to make Senator Olujimi and a few other contestants to step down for him, some stalwarts believed that the flagbearer is a herded candidate, as he was not known in political circles.
Likewise, the recent defection of Adeyeye, after losing the primary, may go a long way to determine Olusola-Eleka’s fate, observers contend.

 

 

Adeyeye had been with us (APC) on two occasions, as we are still discussing on his terms and our terms. By God’s grace, he will openly declare for the APC next week (this week) and the campaigns will become hot, knowing how strong Adeyeye is in the South senatorial district

 

I’LL REPEAT THE 16-0, FAYOSE BOASTS
But the PDP spokesperson in Ekiti state, Mr. Adebayo Jackson, has said Adeyeye’s defection will not affect the party’s performance in the coming election.
“Adeyeye’s defection has no impact on us. PDP in Ekiti is more than that. We will not miss him and his cohorts in the opposition party, which he planted in our party for the purpose of destabilisation, which has come to nought,” Jackson replied.
Speaking too, Fayose said Fayemi would suffer another defeat of his political career in the coming election.
Fayose, citing 2014 16-0 tantrum, said he had all it takes to defeat Fayemi in the race, even at this time that Fayemi is facing his (Fayose’s) candidate.
“In 2014 when he was the sitting governor, and I was not in power, I trounced him mercilessly. I gave him 16-0, defeating him in all the local governments, including in his hometown. He did not win a single local government.
“Now, I have been in power for more than three years and have served the people of Ekiti well. My legacy projects are there to speak for me, and for my party the PDP, as well as for our candidate in the July 14 governorship election, Prof. Kolapo Olusola Eleka.
“Fayemi will suffer the worst defeat of his political career. After the July 14 election, he will go into political oblivion,” Fayose boasted.

I AM WISER NOW, SAYS FAYEMI
But Fayemi, in his response, said his political sagacity had been upgraded enough to pay Fayose and his candidate back in their own coin, come July 14.
Fayemi, making reference to his impact in the Ondo state governorship election that saw Governor Rotimi Akeredolu win, said he is now more mature in politics than in 2014.
He also said he was coming back “to clear the mess created by Fayose”.
“Those of us who travelled out of Ekiti are being insulted, assaulted and mocked on daily basis, as people asked why Ekiti they thought were well read, refined and exposed could make a character like Fayose as their governor.
“That is why it is important for us to reclaim our land and restore our values. Each time I move round Ekiti, I see the pains on the faces of the 25,000 elderly persons who benefited from our social security scheme, 600 people who were employed into the Peace Corps, 10, 000 volunteers who took N10, 000 per month, among others, but have been cut off from these safety nets by Fayose.
“More than 40,000 persons who were gainfully employed by my government have been disengaged by this present government in Ekiti.
“Under my government, I increased the salary of workers from N5, 000 to N7, 000 and from N7, 000 to N13, 000 and later N19, 3000. Who will the workers hate between a government that did these and one that is not paying salary for more than 10 months?
“They said teachers didn’t like Fayemi. During my time, education was free up to SS3. I paid rural allowance to teachers, Core Subjects’ Allowance, paid scholarship and bursary, paid for WAEC and NECO; but all these have been stopped by a government that has no interest in social investment.
“Today, I can boldly say that there is no town I get to out of the 133 towns and villages in our dear state where I will not point to five projects. If I have not done their road, I would have built schools, or renovated their hospital; but today, nothing is happening,” Fayemi lamented.

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