Ekiti Election: Fayemi Urges Fayose, Eleka To Accept Defeat

The Ekiti governor-elect, Kayode Fayemi, has called on the incumbent governor, Ayodele Fayose and his deputy and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Olusola Eleka, to accept the electoral defeat in good faith.

Mr Fayemi urged them to emulate what he did on June 21, 2014 when he accepted Mr Fayose’s victory and congratulated him. He said these while addressing party supporters at a victory rally at the APC secretariat on Sunday in Ado Ekiti.

His call came as Mr Eleka vowed to challenge the results in court, after alleging that the election was rigged.

Mr Fayose has also made similar allegation, saying security operatives and thugs denied the PDP victory.

In his speech on Sunday, Mr Fayemi assured the workers that his government would accord priority to the payment of backlog of salary arrears and youth empowerment as well as rural development.

He said he would inaugurate a Transition Committee on Tuesday that would prepare grounds on how his government would hit the ground running on October 16.

“Today, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has affirmed your collective verdict and formally returned our party the All Progressives Congress (APC) as winner of the 2018 Ekiti gubernatorial election,” he said.

“Today’s victory is to the resilient people of Ekiti State whose brightness and hope never dimmed in the face of untold hardship and all forms of indignity under the PDP leadership who have ruled them like a conquered people.

“As a survival strategy, our people were forced to hail them on the streets all in a bid to survive. They brandished this as a mark of approval, validation and popularity with our people. Ekiti Kete, this is not just a day of our victory through the ballot.

“This is indeed the day of the liberation of Ekiti land. Our collective rescue mission and the audacious dream to reclaim our land and restore our values have attained a new height on the journey to full realization.

“We are particularly pleased that while there were reports of minor breaches as you would find with any high stakes contest, the entire process was adjudged to be generally free, fair, and credible.

“The very nature of elections are divisive as we cannot all see things from the same perspective, neither can we all have the same preference for political parties and candidates. However, regardless of how we voted yesterday, I encourage us all to accept the results in true democratic spirit and commence the journey to reuniting our state.

“Despite the divisive nature of the contest, I want you to remember our bond of unity as Ekiti people. I, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, hereby offer myself to be the governor of all irrespective of faith, creed or political belief.

“I salute all fellow candidates for enriching the process and for your civility and patriotism in accepting the outcome of this exercise. I look forward to consulting with you all to secure your input as we fine-tune our governance agenda for the years ahead.

“I also thank all government entities that participated in the process in one way or the other, especially the INEC and our security agencies, for upholding their neutrality and professionalism in the discharge of their respective mandates.

“Likewise, I thank all Civic Society actors, the international community, our traditional institutions, religious organisations, trade and labour organisations, and the media, for their activities which have in no small measure contributed to the success of the elections.

“Lastly, we thank our President, Muhammadu Buhari and the leadership of our party at all levels for the support in bringing Ekiti back to the progressive fold.”