April 22, (THEWILL)- The Seven-man Primary Election Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC), chaired by Kogi State Governor, Usman Ododo, has declared incumbent governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, as winner of the party’s ticket for the November 2024 gubernatorial election in Ondo state
Aiyedatiwa beats business mogul and senator representing Ondo South district in the National Assembly, Jimoh Ibrahim, and 14 other aspirants, to emerged the APC Candidate For the November guber election.
The other aspirants include Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Olusola Oke; former President of Nigerian Medical Association, Prof. Francis Faduyile; mechanical engineer, Dr Funmi Waheed-Adekojo and APC National Vice Chairman (South West), Isaac Kekemeke.
Others are Dr Soji Ehinlanwo, Akinfolarin Samuel, Okunjimi Odimayo, Adewale Akinterinwa, Olugbenga Edema and Gen. Ohunyeye Olamide, Morayo Lebi, Garvey Oladiran Iyanjan and Ifeoluwa Oyedele.
THEWILL reports that 171,922 Ondo APC members were accredited to vote in the direct primary election held on Saturday in 203 wards across the 18 local government areas of the State.
Declaring results of the election on Monday Morning, chairman of the Ondo Governorship Primary Election Committee of the APC, Governor Ododo announced that Aiyedatiwa polled 48,569 votes to defeat the other aspirants including his closest rival, Mayowa Akinfolarin, who had 15,343 votes.
The result shows that Aiyedatiwa won in 16 out of the 18 council areas in the state, while Oke won in only Ilaje local government but came third after polling a total of 14,915 votes in the election.
However, a former member of the House of Representatives, Mayowa Akinfolarin, came second with a total of 15,343 votes, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim polled 9,456, while the former Commissioner for Finance, Wale Akinterinwa, polled 1,952 votes.
Earlier, Chairman of the Electoral Committee, Governor Ododo, commended stakeholders and members of the party in Ondo State for their orderly conduct and massive turnout during the direct primary election.
Speaking after he received reports from members of the APC Governorship Primary Election Committee, security agencies and other stakeholders, who monitored the conduct of the primary election in different parts of the 18 local government areas of the state, Ododo described the exercise as transparent.
“I have received reports from our committee members and security agencies as well as NGOs monitoring the election including video footage and I can say that the process has been transparent and we are going to produce a candidate that will unify the APC ahead of the November 2024 governorship election in the state”, he said.
Responding to questions over delay in arrival of electoral materials in some wards and local government areas, Governor Ododo said he was certain that the delay had no adverse effect on the conduct of the primary election.
The Kogi governor also expressed confidence that concerns noticed in the revalidated membership, have no significant impact on the outcome of the primary election, stressing that the committee was well guided by the APC guidelines for the nomination of candidates for general elections and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.
Meanwhile, four governorship aspirants have described the gubernatorial primary as a sham that must not be allowed to stand, accusing Governor Ododo of not following the guidelines of the shadow election.
The governorship aspirants including Gbenga Edema, Wale Akinterinwa, Olusola Oke and Prof. Dayo Faduyile, who alleged that the election commenced in some wards without the electoral materials being distributed, called for the cancellation of the process.
Edema said: “At the stakeholders’ meeting, the Secretary of the Committee that came from Abuja to conduct this primary, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, informed us that the distribution of materials will be done to the electoral officers of each of the wards at the Bon Hotel, Ijapo Estate, Akure, starting at 7.00am, and that by 10.00am, accreditation will start in each of the wards, which will last till 1.00am, and also that by 1.00pm, the proper election will take place, and by 2.00pm, the result will be announced.
“Now, we have been here since 6.30am with a lot of our electoral officers, especially those whose names appeared on the list. Unfortunately, nothing happened until 10.00am.
“Around 9.30am, His Excellency, the Governor of Kogi State, Usman Ododo, came out to tell us that materials had been distributed. At what time? Where? We don’t know! Unfortunately for him, the returning officers and the electoral officer of my ward, Mahin Ward II in Ilaje Local Council, are here and unable to collect any materials.
“What we are asking for is a credible election. So, we are asking the leadership of the party to look into this. If they are not ready for this election, they should postpone it and the right thing should be done.”
On his part, Akinterinwa, who spoke through the Director of Programmes of his campaign, Sola Ajisafe, said: “For APC to bring Ododo to Ondo State is a low for our party and state, and our position is that no primary election has taken place; no election materials have left here; and we are saying that the leadership of the party should do the needful by sending another neutral person, just like they did in Edo State, to come and conduct another primary election where the good people of Ondo State will freely exercise their franchise to pick their candidate.
“If the leadership of the party fails to do the needful, then there is a way we will react, and we are going to react accordingly. If any results are announced, we are telling the leadership of the party, including President Bola Tinubu, that no election took place in Ondo State and no materials were distributed for us to pick our preferred candidate.”
Also, Rotimi Ogunleye, who addressed newsmen on behalf of Oke, said: “We got here around 6.30am; we don’t know when and where the election materials were sent out from this place to Ondo South and North Senatorial Districts. The truth of the matter is that there were no materials sent out.
“Why can’t they follow the due process? The national leadership of the party should call Ododo to order; they should follow the guidelines they released.”
