Seventy-two hours after last Saturday’s election that returned former Governor, Ayo Fayose, to power, the Governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, and his successor, monday met and agreed to set up a committee to draw a plan for a smooth transition of power on October 16.
To this end, Fayemi appealed to the governor-elect to advise his supporters to exercise restraint so that the love existing among political leaders in the state can be sustained.
Addressing the Fayose’s team who visited his office, Fayemi said he would continue to identify with any action that would make the state progress in all spheres.
The two leaders met at the Governor’s office in Ado Ekiti, following the emergence of Fayose of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the June 21 governorship election.
Among those who accompanied Fayose to the governor's office were the state chairman of the PDP, Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe; Mr. Tope Aluko, state secretary, party chieftain and minister-designate, Dayo Adeyeye; former Deputy Governor, Mrs. Biodun Olujimi and former Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice, Mr. Owoseni Ajayi.
According to the governor, there was nothing “unAfrican or UnNigerian” in his congratulatory message to Fayose, saying that was what he should do as someone, who believes in democratic ethos.
Fayemi said: “They said my congratulatory message to the governor-elect is unAfrican or unNigerian. I don’t think it was so because that was what I was expected to do as a democrat.
“As an elected officer, I have no choice than to respect the wishes of the people. Our democracy is fragile and we have to do whatever we can as leaders to strengthen and deepen it the more.
“Ekiti State is also unique. We all have ties dated back to centuries, so we are not disagreeable in any way”, Fayemi pointed out.
Fayemi, who commented on the lingering crisis and violence that dogged the electioneering by the two leading parties, stated: “What caused those things was the fact that we were playing politics. All is power struggle. We wanted to take from the same basket. But today, we have taken it with equanimity.
“So, I congratulate the governor-elect because what we are doing today is a lesson for us that in whatever we do as leaders, we have to consider the overall interest of the Ekiti people.
“Today, the state is victorious. We have shown the world that politics can be played with decorum and restraint. But I have to continue to deliver the dividends of democracy to our people until October 16, so we have to plead with our supporters to exercise restraint,” Fayemi advised.
While speaking earlier, Fayose said his coming to the governor was borne out of genuine intention to promote love and unity among Ekiti leaders.
The governor-elect, who hailed the governor for conceding defeat to him, said this states manly conduct would forever remain in history.
Fayose said: “I am here today to further promote peace and
reconciliation among Ekiti leaders. No more politics of bitterness because Ekiti is one.
“The time is ripe for all leaders to think of how the state can develop rather than promoting division that would set us back. In this election, there is no victor, no vanquished. It was a victory for all Ekiti indigenes.”
Meanwhile, as a fall-out of last weekend defeat of its candidate in the election, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has scheduled an emergency meeting of its top leaders to assess what went wrong with the poll with a view to taking a final position on it.
The meeting, which is to take place between today and tomorrow in Abuja, will attempt to appraise the party's performance at the election, taking into consideration "any act of misdemeanor that may have been committed by the PDP and its agents during the voting."
A reliable party source who spoke to newsmen regarding the election, said the leadership of the APC had not formally accepted defeat and would use the meeting to articulate its position. He said leadership of the party was also very worried about the confidence-boosting the Ekiti victory would give the PDP ahead of the next governorship poll in Osun State and would try and use the meeting to map out strategies to counter any PDP’s plot.
"You know we are yet to accept the outcome of the Ekiti election. I must tell you, the matter is ended yet, as we now aware of how the PDP deployed it ringing machinery last Saturday. We are going look at the new antics of the PDP and to prevent its being repeated in Osun, " he said.
The APC source said the PDP had perfected a rigging plan that is almost hard to detect by a suspecting onlooker and that it would only take forensic screening of the ballot for it to be unmasked.
Newsmen had gathered that though the APC's governorship candidate in the election and the incumbent governor, Fayemi, had congratulated the winner, Fayose of the PDP, the leadership of his party was still considering several options to respond to the defeat.
One of the options that was being considered is to seek to subject the ballots used for the gubernatorial poll to a forensic scrutiny.
A top leadership source told THISDAY last Sunday that the party leaders are putting head together to weigh the options, adding that the party hopes to make its final position on the matter known to the public in the days ahead.
"We are yet to come to terms with the 'tsunami' that befell us last Saturday. But the truth is that we have not entirely accepted the outcome of election. What we are considering is to compel the entire exercise to forensic investigation. Our party would meet and come up with a decision on that soon," he said.
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