The
All Progressives Congress (APC) are celebrating the victory of Rotimi
Akeredolu, governor-elect of Ondo state, in Saturday's election, but
where did it all go wrong for PDP's Jegede who was backed by the
governor? Or where did it go right for Akeredolu?
The Ondo State governorship election looked a 3-way race involving
Rorimi Akeredolu (APC), Eyitayo Jegede (PDP) and Olusola Oke of the
Alliance for Democracy (AD), who defected to AD after losing the APC
ticket to Akeredolu.
The surprise was not that Akeredolu finally won but that the race
proved less by competitive than anticipated, as no one expected
Akeredolu to secure 42 percent of the votes while leaving Oke, Jegede
and 26 other aspirants to scramble for the remaining 58 percent.
So where did it all go wrong for Jegede especially, and Oke? Or where did it go right for Akeredolu?
THE ‘IROKO’ BECAME A SHRUB
Olusegun Mimiko, outgoing governor of the state, as ‘Iroko’, didn’t
you? Believed to possess supernatural properties, Iroko is a large
hardwood tree that can live up to 500 years.
Mimiko rode into office on a popular note. He was so loved that the
people supported him to break the jinx of one-term limit in the state —
he did. He remains the only Ondo governor to have been elected for a
second term, since Adekunle Ajasin managed the feat back in 1983.
However, he lost touch with his people during his second term. As
of the weekend, his government was owing civil servants seven months of
salary. Unconfirmed reports even had it that he told the workers to vote
for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and get paid on Monday.
Many were grumbling about some of his policies. Though Ondo can be
rated among the states with the best road network in the country, some
of his opponents claimed he could not be credited for it, as the late
Olusegun Agagu built most of them.
The issues raised were focal points in the election, by which time
the Iroko had diminished in popularity to perhaps the status of just a
shrub.
FEDERAL FINANCIAL MIGHT
“The votes were purchased; any party which says it did not settle
voters in this election is just deceiving itself. But the people
collected money and made their choice.”
Those were the words of a former commissioner of Mimiko, who now belongs to Akeredolu’s camp.
The role of money cannot be ruled out in the politics of our
country. Perhaps realising the widespread condemnation that followed
inducement of voters in Edo election, the politicians devised a means of
not making it obvious.
In one polling station in Akure, the state capital, those who
wanted to distribute money changed their minds as soon as they realised
the presence of journalists.
The financial backing that Akeredolu enjoyed in the election is
incomparable with that of any other candidate, with governors,
ministers, top chieftains of the party pumping money into his campaign.
PEOPLES (UN)DEMOCRATIC PARTY
Eyitayo Jegede 2Forty-eight hours to the election, Jegede, PDP’s
candidate, was unsure he would feature in the election due to the crisis
at the national level of the party.
Jimoh Ibrahim, factional candidate of the party, did not show signs
of seriousness in the race. Once asked why he did not have enough
publicity materials, he said: “My campaign manager is out there”, making
reference to Jegede.
Jegede, the man who eventually flew the PDP banner, is well-loved,
so much that APC supporters in fact spoke well of him. But the time he
should have spent campaigning went into running from one court to the
other to enforce his candidature.
Credits: TheCable News
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