Date Published: 05/07/09

‘Ekiti INEC boss misled Nigerians’—Keyamo

Lagos lawyer, Mr. Festus Keyamo, has joined the growing number of Nigerians who have so far discredited the results of the Ekiti  re run as announced by the State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mrs. Ayoka Adebayo.

The result favoured Mr. Segun Oni of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who allegedly polled 111,140 votes as against the 107,417 votes garnered by the Action Congress candidate, Kayode Fayemi. According to Keyamo, Adebayo’s purported resignation was to deceive unsuspecting Nigerians of the antics she was trying to play, in connivance with the PDP, to declare Oni as the duly elected state governor.

In a release made available to P.M.NEWS, Keyamo stated that, “when, a few days ago, I cried out that nobody should be carried away by the antics of Mrs. Ayoka Adebayo, some people thought I did not read the situation correctly. Instead of announcing the correct figures at the right moment or cancelling the inflated results from some wards, she preferred to engage in a phantom resignation and the use of some emotive words that misled Nigerians.

“How have her actions helped Nigerians and Ekiti now? Her prevarication and dilly-dallying has led to a highly disputed outcome and possibility of violence in Ekiti state. That is what you must always expect when you fail to seize the moment to do what is right. It reminds me of Prof. Humphrey Nwosu and the June 12 saga. Mrs. Adebayo, INEC, the PDP and security agencies have once again let Nigerians down.” The lawyer further stressed that the result from the re run in Ekiti is a complete shame to the country’s tottering democracy that continues to parade losers as winners and winners as losers.

“If Segun Oni manages to continue as a controversial governor, it will be a travesty of justice for the Supreme Court to interpret his four-year tenure as beginning from this election, just as in the case of Peter Obi of Anambra state. “The simple question is: how can a candidate who is adjudged to have rigged an election, and who is now given a chance to re-contest a re-run, now have a tenure extended by another four years?” he asked, adding that the country cannot continue with the way elections are held.

He advised Nigerians to vigorously support the reform of the electoral system. Also speaking on the issue, the President of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights, Mr. Olasupo Ojo, and the Second Vice President of Nigerian Bar Association, Mr. Adekunle Ojo, condemned the outcome of the Ekiti election. The duo spoke on an Africa Independent Television (AIT) programme, Kakaaki, this morning. Olasupo condemned the declaration of Engineer Oni as the winner of the re-run election which he said was massively rigged in Ido-Osi.

He also condemned the negligence of duty on the part of the Resident Electoral Commissioner of Ekiti, Mrs. Adebayo, for her failure to address the issues raised by other political party electoral officials to counter the Ido-Osi result. He further appealed to the federal government to fully apply the recommendations of the Justice Uwais panel report on electoral reforms if truly the government is sensitive to the yearning of the people who want free and fair elections.

“The current constitution does not guarantee a free and fair election since the president has the power to appoint INEC boss; and to be an INEC commissioner, you must belong to a political party. Power is also vested in the president to appoint the head of security agencies and he is also the leader of his political party. “Uwais’ panel report restricts the power of the president and should be implemented,” he opined. Olasupo added that “Nigerians must ensure that we call for a change of our leaders and make our votes count, since an average politician wants to retain power at all costs. The solution to our problems lies with the good people of this country.”

Mr. Adekunle Ojo also blasted INEC officials and the REC of Ekiti for their inability to conduct a free and fair election. He faulted the absence of polling agents of other political parties at the police station where the Ido-Osi result was collated and decried the margin of Engineer Oni’s victory. He further implored Nigerians to ensure that they demand for the full recommendations of Uwai’s panel report and suggested that elections should be staggered and not held at once in order to have a free and fair polls.

“We can no longer leave the conduct of free and fair elections to INEC and our leaders alone. The INEC boss should not be appointed by the president any more, but by judicial means and he/she must not have a political affiliation. We should ask for what we want just as the Ekiti people did. Uwais’ recommendations should be fully implemented. “There can be free and fair election in Nigeria when the law is allowed to take its course. A situation where AK 47 rifles are carried around and a senator is caught with thugs armed with charms and guns, assaulting journalists and other citizens of the country without anyone of them being arrested, should be frowned at.” Olasupo, however, urged Nigerians to join the street protest on electoral reform which comes up towards the end of this month.