EXPECT MORE DIVIDENDS OF DEMOCRACY, FAYEMI TELLS ELECTORATE

Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has urged the people of the state to expect more dividends of democracy if he wins re-election in the June 21 governorship election.

The governor who made the promise on Tuesday during the second leg of his campaign tour to Ekiti East Local Government Area promised to work harder to improve the standard of living if he secures second term in office.

He said the various projects executed and commissioned by his administration are having positive impact on the lives of the benefiting communities.

Fayemi stressed that his administration has touched all parts of the state and the need to consolidate on the achievements recorded in the last three and half years formed the basis for a quest for a fresh term in office.

The governor held rallies to drum support for his re-election bid in communities like Omuo, Eda-Ile and Isinbode and was received by traditional rulers, community leaders and other interest groups.

Fayemi urged the people to be vigilant as election day approaches to prevent anti-democratic elements from stealing their votes which he described as "very sacred".

The governor expressed confidence that old people receiving monthly stipends, youth empowered through the Volunteer Corps scheme and beneficiaries of free health programme in government hospitals will use their votes to keep his government in office for the good work to continue.

Addressing the people of Omuo, Fayemi explained that his administration has done a lot for the community.

The governor said the Omuo General Hospital has received a massive renovation and equipped with a new ambulance and stocked with drugs to boost healthcare delivery.

He added that a new transformer, which happened to be the sixth in the community, had just been installed to boost power supply while the community also benefited from the five-kilometer road projects carried out by the local council.

While pointing out that more dividends of democracy are still in the offing, Fayemi said work had commenced on the Omuo-Isinbode-Agbado Road while a new ultramodern market is under construction in Omuo to boost the economy of the area.

He revealed that the town's water project which is one of the major demands of the residents has been incorporated into this year's budget.

"Keep your voter's card, don't forget it at home on election day. Our aged who receive monthly stipend, youth who receive stipend under the Volunteer Corps, pregnant women and others I believe will keep their voter's card ahead of the election.

"We are ready to work harder, remain resolute and I know you will not let us down. You have enjoyed dividends of democracy from a progressive government and I know you want this to continue.

"We are ready to offer ourselves to work harder to improve the standard of living of our people", Fayemi said.

At Eda-Ile, the governor promised to link the only major road that enters the community to nearby communities.

He said the recently commissioned town hall, residential quarters for medical workers in the health centre, renovation of the community high school and the construction of a hall in the school are legacies of his administration in Eda-Ile.

The governor urged voters to be prepared for the election day to exercise their franchise in favour of the progressive government.

TEACHERS, STUDENTS, MARKET WOMEN BACK FAYEMI AHEAD OF ELECTION

It was a tumultuous welcome for Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, on Friday as his campaign train rolled into Efon Alaaye, the headquarters of Efon Local Government Area ahead of the June 21 governorship poll.

At a rally held at the town's square, teachers in public schools, students, market women, community leaders all declared their support for Fayemi's second term and pledged to vote for the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the election.

The interest groups in the community who all declared their readiness to back Fayemi for another term in office while affirming their support for the APC maintained that "they would not vote for any party that will put Ekiti State on reverse gear". 

Fayemi also campaigned in adjoining settlements including Itawure, Ita Ido and Iwaji where he urged the people to vote for the progressive party which the APC represented.

The governor was accompanied to the rally by his wife, Bisi; former Governor Adeniyi Adebayo, Speaker of the House of Assembly, Dr. Wale Omirin; state APC Chairman, Chief Olajide Awe, commissioners, other government officials  and party leaders.

He warned the electorate not to allow politicians who misused power, promoted violence, brigandage, looting, impunity and maltreatment of traditional rulers and elders to come back to power.

The governor also stated that the support declared for him by teachers in Efon showed that he has nothing against them as being peddled by the opposition maintaining that teachers had enjoyed salary increment three times since he came to office.

He further added that teachers teaching core subjects and those teaching in rural areas receive special allowance beside their normal salaries.

The governor said there is no part of the state that is not linked with good roads unlike in the past when an opposition candidate constructed a road to his community which collapsed within six months.

Fayemi said: "Our party loves the masses but the other party don't value old men, they don't value old people, they don't take care of the aged and they don't respect the youth.

"Our government will not misbehave if you vote us in and we are different from the party that steals votes to get to power and will never respect anybody.

"During the Adebayo administration that was in power for four years, the state enjoyed peace and harmony and even won an award as the most peaceful state in the country.

"But the next seven and half years of this other party in power, it was looting, fraud, violence, killing, impunity and brigandage. But in our government, we respect the dignity of human person, we have experienced peace, progress and development.

"Ask our students what Ekiti State University looked like in 2010 and what it looks like now. Ask our students in College of Education, Ikere looked like in 2010 and how it looks like now.

"If they don't kill councillorship candidate in Ifaki, they will kill College of Education students in Ikere. Tell them we fear no one because we believe in God. We will not start any fight but we are not scared of fighting.

The governor had earlier visited the palace of the Alaaye of Efon, Oba Emmanuel Adesanya Aladejare who said all the achievements recorded in the last three and half years will speak for Fayemi at the election adding that he has said it before and he would say it again that Fayemi will triumph.

Enthusiastic indigenes of Efon who had been waiting for governor on the outskirts of the town welcomed him with pomp and pageantry and ushered the state number one citizen into the palace of the monarch.

Locals all shouted the slogan of the APC as the train moved across the town until the governor arrived the campaign ground. Other residents who could not make it to the campaign ground climbed tall buildings to get a better view of the event.

The teachers in Efon who were led to the rally by Mr. Olusegun Ojo Israel said they are supporting Fayemi for his love for teachers and for giving them various incentives contrary to the opposition's claim that the governor hates teachers.

"We are supporting our governor because he is a good leader and has performed well in office.

"He is compassionate, brilliant, intelligent, articulate. He has made life easier for us, we are going with him and we are going to vote for him", Israel said.

The president of Federation of Efon Students Union (FESU), Odunayo Olowoyeye, described Fayemi as " fulfiller of promises" who has turned around the fortunes of the state.

He praised the governor for his commitment to the education sector which has boosted the image of Ekiti within and outside the state.

Olowoyeye added: "On behalf of the 3, 500 students in Efon Local Government Area, I promise you that we will all vote for you and at the end of the election, we will all rejoice".

The Iyaloja of Efon, Mrs. Asunke Ojo, said all market women in the town and its  environs are casting their votes for Fayemi at the poll for taking care of the old women and the youths.

Mrs. Ojo said the people of the community have felt the impact of the Fayemi administration more than the previous administrations, urging voters to cast their votes for the governor.

The Obaloja of Efon, Chief Bode Thomas, who spoke on behalf of the traditional institution at the rally said Ekiti has enjoyed peace since Fayemi came to power and the people want the peace to continue.

He said Fayemi has done a lot for Efon and the entire community is praying for the success of the governor at the election.

"By the grace of God, your second term is already assured and any party that will put Ekiti on reverse gear will not come to power again", Thomas prayed.

WE SUCCEED BECAUSE WE RESPECT TRADITIONAL INSTITUTION, SAYS FAYEMI

Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi says his administration has been able to attract God's blessings and approval because of its respect for the traditional institution and elders.

Speaking in Ijelu in Oye Local Government during his re-election campaign, which entered day 2 on Thursday, Fayemi said rather than desecrate the traditional institution as was once witnessed in the state, his administration had instead elevated the social status and the well-being of the obas through various perks, some of which are the health outreach to palaces and the brand new cars distributed to all of them.

"We are going to win, we are a successful government. We are not chased away on account of electoral fraud or state-sponsored terrorism. We don't lock up traditional rulers in the booth of cars, and we don't treat our elders with disrespect. 

"We take care of our elders by giving them social security stipends every month. We also gave brand new cars to our traditional rulers and we are not a government of abandoned projects," the governor said.

Fayemi added that of all the requests presented to his administration by the Ijelu community, the only one yet to be granted is the Ijelu/Itapa road which has also been incorporated into the 2014 budget and would be done before December.

In Omu, the governor urged all eligible voters in the state who are yet to obtain their permanent voter's card to do so at the INEC office in their respective local government areas.

Addressing a throng of his supporters and admirers in the town, Fayemi said the voter's card remains the greatest weapon with which they could engender the continuation of good governance in the state.

Fayemi, who paid a courtesy call on traditional rulers in all communities visited, noted that his government was able to bring change to all the communities in the state because it never discriminated.

The governor listed the projects executed by his government in Omu to include school renovation, 3.6km Omu/Ilemeso road, Ifon/Abudo/Temidire Street road and the renovation of open market stall.

Ongoing projects in the town include construction of Owajumu’s palace, construction of 5km township road and 22.5km Omu/Gede/Ayede road.
Among those who welcomed the governor at Itapa-Ekiti were some of the 70 beneficiaries of the monthly stipend for elderly persons.

They thanked the governor for his love for old people and prayed that God would give him long life and victory over his opponents.

Scores of members of the Labour Party in the town defected to the APC, saying Fayemi's outstanding performance was what attracted them to the APC

Other towns visited by the campaign train included Osin, Ilupeju and Ire.

In all towns visited, the people rolled out the drums to welcome the governor with dance and singing.

Those who joined the governor on the campaign train included the Deputy Governor, Professor Dupe Adelabu, Ekiti APC Chairman, Chief Jide Awe, the Director-General of the Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation, Hon. Bimbo Daramola, Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Granite Owolabi, commissioners, Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr. Yemi Adaramodu, amongst others.

Ekiti Will Hold Jonathan Responsible For Every Violent Act of Fayose - Fayemi Campaign Organisation

By master-minding impeached former Governor Ayo Fayose to emerge as the Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ekiti State shows clearly that the Jonathan presidency has no strategy other than violence for the June 21 governorship election in the state.

A statement by the spokesperson of the Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation, Dimeji Daniels, says Fayose was teleguided to win the PDP primaries because of his anti-democratic credentials of violence and maiming, a clear pointer that the presidency and the PDP have perfected strategies to rig the June 21 governorship election.

Daniels said "What this means is that the Jonathan presidency and the PDP have no sense of history regarding Ekiti people. Ekiti people have been known to resist shady characters. This same man was sent packing with his tails between his legs by Ekiti people when it became apparent that he had no respect for human dignity. By throwing up Fayose again in a race that should involve decent people, the PDP is clearly spitting on the grave of Tunde Omojola who on 28 May, 2005 was mowed down by the murderous train of Ayo Fayose in Ifaki-Ekiti. On this same day, Ayo Fayose disrupted an Alliance for Democracy (AD) gathering at Matthew Street in Ado-Ekiti. The likes of Chief George Akosile are still alive to relive the story.

"The PDP is also spitting on the graves of Ijan Ekiti-born Dr. Ayo Daramola who was ruthlessly killed on 14 August 2006 because of his gubernatorial ambition and the students of College of Education, Ikere-Ekiti who under the administration of Ayo Fayose as governor were cut short in their prime in a most ruthless manner on 16 March, 2004. The late Attah of Ayede-Ekiti, Oba Adeleye Orisagbemi, who was forcefully whisked away from his palace by Fayose's goons on Wednesday, 12 August, 2004 all because Fayose wanted to install his cousin in his place would be stirring in his grave at this travesty. Those who lost relations and friends and those who lost limbs like Olugbenga Jaiyeola to the violence that sign-posted the Fayose administration between 29 May, 2003 and 16 October, 2006 are now being forced by the PDP to relive the gory details."

Daniels said Ekiti people have not forgot any of Fayose's violent acts foisted on the state when he was the governor, adding that this was responsible for his whitewash in the senatorial election of 2011 and that this same factor would still lead to his defeat in the June 21 governorship election.

He added that Fayose who is now the new bride of the PDP was indicted by a four-man security team instituted by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo when the panel wrote in its report that Fayose "has zero tolerance for opposition. He constantly sets in motion activities that will lead to violent acts and always travels out of town for his cohorts to perpetrate their violent acts without restraint and also create alibis".

The spokesperson of the Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation said Ekiti people will hold President Jonathan and the PDP responsible for every violent act of Ayo Fayose in the run-up to the governorship election and during and after the election. The president and the PDP should also know that the days that Fayose can ride roughshod in Ekiti State are over. Every violent act of Ayo Fayose will be resisted, so is his Ogun State wanted fugitive friend. We are also putting Fayose on notice that he should conduct himself peacefully, otherwise he would be visited with the wrath of Ekiti people just like in 2006 when he was sent packing with his tails between his legs in the dead of the night."

Daniels added that it amounted to insult for the PDP to have picked a candidate like Fayose to represent it in the governorship contest of a progressive state like Ekiti, adding that the insult must be resisted by all Ekiti indigenes irrespective of political affiliations.

"It was insulting enough that Fayose ever ruled a progressive state of forward-looking people like Ekiti. It is more insulting that the Jonathan presidency and the PDP have thrown him up as their candidate again as though we were still in the stone age. Though Fayose cannot win a councillorship election in his hometown of Afao-Ekiti, but it is insulting to have such a character contest the governorship election of our dear state, particularly after the internationally acknowledged stellar performance of the Dr. Kayode Fayemi administration over the past three and half years and the elevated level of political discourse and culture. This is why all Ekiti people, irrespective of political affiliations, would unite to ward off this insult," he said.

He added that as the governor of Ekiti, Fayose looted the treasury of the state and failed the people woefully. 

"The case instituted by the EFCC against Fayose is still in court. It would not be a surprise if he eventually runs his campaign between his campaign office and various court-rooms where he is being tried for murder and corruption. 

"The Fayose administration constructed the 10.745 kilometre Ado/Afao road, but the road didn't last for six months. As is Fayose's tradition, it was another cosmetic project to defraud Ekiti. The unfortunate part of it is that Afao is Fayose's hometown, but it didn't matter to him if the road was of standard quality. That was the first road constructed by the Fayemi administration and three years down the line, the road is still in good condition. That is the road Fayose now uses to access his town from the state capital. There are also 28 elderly persons in Fayose's hometown who are beneficiaries of the social security scheme. This is besides the 10 young persons enrolled by the State Youth Volunteer Corps who on a monthly basis earn N10, 000. Under the community self-help projects of the Fayemi administration, the hall in Fayose's town has also been renovated. Governor Fayemi has done more for Afao-Ekiti people than Fayose ever did," Daniels argued.

On the allegation of Labour Party aspirant Opeyemi Bamidele that the Fayemi administration had squandered not less than N400 billion since 2012, Daniels said the federal allocation accrued to the state during this period plus the N25 billion bond accessed from the Capital Market by the State Government is not up to the N150 billion and that Bamidele has a way of twisting facts to create a sense of logic, adding, however, that Bamidele has never been consistent in his words and actions and so should be disregarded totally.

"This same man tried to use the 2006 census figures to mislead the people last year. He had claimed that there were over 494, 000 houses in Ekiti State, but that was in 2006. Bamidele built his house in Iyin-Ekiti after 2006. So, the number of houses in Ekiti in 2006 cannot be the same as in 2013. When he defected to the Labour Party, he alleged that he did that because there would be no primaries for governorship aspirants in the ACN, but on the floor of the House of Representatives, the whole of Nigeria saw him when he again said the reason for his defection was because his party merged with CPC and ANPP. That tells you how inconsistent Opeyemi Bamidele is. As it is, he has reached the end of his political career and he knows it, but like a beheaded snake, he must writhe a bit. That is what he is doing now - writhing in pain," Daniels said.

Signed:

Dimeji Daniels

Spokesperson, Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation

Haba Ekiti PDP! Ayodele Fayose Again? By Abiodun Ladepo

Posted: Mar, 24 2014, 5:03PM

By Abiodun Ladepo

What is wrong with the people of Ekiti State? How on earth could a man who was impeached for corruption and related offences a few years back return to win his party’s nomination for the same office in Ekiti State? I know this charade was sponsored and husbanded by ONLY the people of Ekiti who are in the PDP and NOT by all of Ekiti people. Still, I am forced to ask: Does the PDP in Ekiti have such a dearth of good, untainted, well-educated men and women? Why would a dog return to its vomit?  

Ayodele Fayose, a disgraced former governor of Ekiti State, recently won the state’s PDP gubernatorial primary election by a landslide - 462 votes out of the 477 votes cast. His closest rival, Caleb Olubode, a former minister, secured only seven votes while Adedayo Adeyeye and Margaret Ogundipe (both political featherweights) won three and one votes respectively. The remaining votes were shared among the other also-rans. And so, our Fayose will now contest the general election against current governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, in June. Certainly, the PDP as a whole, the PDP in Ekiti State and all of Ekiti people can do without this crudity.

Until the PDP-led Ekiti State House of Assembly impeached him and his deputy, Mrs. Abiodun Olujinmi in 2006, Fayose embodied the odious stench that pervaded many a State House. Not only did he reek of corruption, he also lacked finesse and elegance that one expected out of Ekiti land. Many who supported him then and still support him now point to his “grassroots” credentials which, they argue, brought government to the ordinary people’s doorsteps as a potent political weapon in his arsenal. But grassroots political acumen should not be the sole determining parameter when selecting a State’s chief executive. Probity and integrity should come before a politician’s ability to hoodwink the electorate.  

I know that winning the PDP primary in Ekiti State in 2014 does not automatically translate to winning the governorship against an APC incumbent governor, but it is heresy to have a character like Fayose hanging around anywhere near the Governor’s office. Or, are we not talking about the same Fayose who, according to the EFCC, stole from his State’s local government councils and operated foreign bank accounts in contravention of extant Nigerian laws?

When he took the oath of office in 2003, Fayose had pledged, like all the other governors and president, to uphold the spirit and letters of the Nigerian Constitution, including Section 162, which forbade the illegal diversion of local government funds. Also implied in the oath was the strict adherence to the provisions of the Code of Conduct for public officers, including paragraph 3 which prohibited the operation, by public officials, of foreign bank accounts.

But Fayose, like many of his fellow thieves, took his oath with levity and never, for once, planned to obey it. He continued to maintain his numerous foreign bank accounts in the UK and the US, using them to stash his loot from the State's treasury - exactly why the Code of Conduct prohibited the owning and operation of those kinds of accounts in the first place. And in a brazen contravention of the Money Laundering Act of 2004, Fayose illegally transferred $100,000 of his State's money to one such account in the US.

Like many public official thieves who use proxies to steal, Fayose asked his friend, Gbenga James, to set up phony companies, (one of them was named Biological Concepts), to which he verbally awarded a phantom Poultry Farm contract and diverted close to N800 million that was part of his local governments' statutory allocations. Fayose could also not account for another N11 Billion out of N16 Billion which the Federal government had paid into the joint state/local government accounts. This did not include the hyper-inflated contracts for refurbishing the governor's office and numerous road projects which were never even started.

James, also conveniently a "building contractor," then built a N40 million house for Fayose at the Iyaganku area in Ibadan as a "gift" - a clear violation of paragraph 6 of the Code of Conduct. This was not to include another house valued at N20 million built and owned by Fayose in the same area of Ibadan just since he became governor of Ekiti State. Fayose also managed to put up a N25 million house at his hometown of Afao-Ekiti. As kickback on the contract for Fountain Hotel, this rogue received N42 million from one Abiodun Arole of Grid Associates, through one Ayobola Abiola, then of the Standard Trust Bank Plc and later with FCMB Plc, Dugbe Branch, Ibadan.  The people of Ekiti should also not forget the "paltry" N2.4million car that James bought for Fayose's prophetess mother in Ibadan, and the millions that he used to refurbish the family church located (you guessed it) also in Ibadan. This guy took corruption to a new height (or a new low, if you will) when he personally drove to Adamasingba in Ibadan (in broad daylight), waited in the vehicle with the engine running while his aide went upstairs to an office from where he literally dragged to Fayose’s car a "Ghana-Must-Go" bag full of kickback money.   

If you mingled in the night-time social circles of Ibadan between 2003 and 2006, you would have wondered, like many of us did, if there were two governors in Oyo State. At one point in 2005, the people of Ekiti State, then represented in the State's House of Assembly by mostly spineless people (until they grew a spine and impeached Fayose) whose legislative compass was supine (until they woke up from their slumber and impeached Fayose), trampled over each other in order to see their governor between Monday and Friday, because, if they failed to see him in Ado Ekiti during those days, they had to come to Ibadan on weekends to see their governor. Governor Fayose spent his weekends crawling through the night-life of Ibadan like an owl…as if his duties as governor ended on Friday afternoon in Ekiti State. Some in Ekiti State derisively referred to him as "The other governor of Ibadan."

And whenever Fayose came to Ibadan, he brought with him a retinue of hangers-on, leaches, miscreants and fellow kleptomaniacs. His thugs came with him from Ekiti and competed with those of the late Baba Adedibu on the Ring Road/Molete axis. Hoteliers on Ring Road and Oluyole areas of Ibadan did brisk business whenever Fayose was in town. He and his goons spent money as if it was the end of life itself.  Musicians sang their praises endlessly. Even those that went up the dance floor to spray musicians ended up being lavished with money by Fayose and Company.

You had to witness one of those witless orgies for you to know that it was only a matter of time before this unbridled thief ran into Nemesis. And when Nuhu Ribadu’s EFCC blackmailed the equally corrupt members of the Ekiti House of Assembly into starting the impeachment process, Fayose went back to his roots - his religious roots from way back when he was a church-going boy in his Ibadan parents' church. He dragged God's name into his bottomless chasm of corruption.

Hear him: “Since we started this battle which dates back to the time of the primaries, when I was sworn in and began to serve the good people of Ekiti State, I have not lost any battle.  So, in the end, I'll be vindicated by God Almighty.” Fayose plowed even deeper into the Scriptures: “I want them to know that the God I serve would definitely put them to shame because their gathering is not of God and it would be scattered…I will not look into their faces but unto God, the Author and Finisher of my faith. As God delivered Daniel, He will fight for me and deliver me.”

Utter balderdash, I said. Of course, Fayose lost the battle and lost the war.  He was successfully impeached. What did God Almighty have to do with his case? Did Daniel steal from his people like Fayose had done? Why do thieves further compound their sins by blasphemously invoking the name of God when they are caught? Did not Tafa Balogun also invoke the name of God when he was dragged to the courts by the EFCC? Did not governors Alamieyeseigha and Dariye swear that they were innocent men even in the face of a mountain of evidence to the contrary? Did not James Ibori claim he was a saint? Did not Stella Oduah cry gang up when she was caught? Is not Diezani Madueke currently claiming innocence of the monumental graft under her supervision?  Even Ibrahim Babangida was quick to call on Allah when things appeared to be falling apart and his son had to speak with the EFCC. Was God ever in the calculations of these people when they themselves played god?

Still hanging over the head of Fayose is the death in 2005 of Tunde Omojola, a Germany-based relative of an opposition party (NCP) candidate, who was dragged out of his car and beaten to death by Fayose's security men, including his brother, Isaac Fayose while governor Fayose watched. Omojola had the misfortune of being present during a ward Councillorship by-election fracas in Ifaki-Ekiti. Some witnesses alleged in court that Fayose personally delivered the fatal blow to Omojola’s groin area! Also still hanging over Fayose’s head is the yet-to-be-solved murder, in 2006, of Dr. Ayo Daramola, a very strong political adversary of Fayose who was going to give Fayose a good run for his money within the PDP. And this is the kind of person Ekiti PDP wants to field for gubernatorial elections?   

In his twisted mind, Fayose actually did believe that his travails in 2005 and 2006 were "the beginning of greatness." I thought the saying was always true that "those whom the gods want to destroy, they first make mad."  Otherwise, how could anybody in his right mind think he could ride roughshod over the people of Ekiti State (of all people) for so long and expect to come out unscathed? But apparently, Fayose has been proven right. Somebody…some people…four hundred and sixty-two people of Ekiti land think little of Fayose’s past. They braved the heat and voted for Fayose to run for governor again? They voted for the man who hopped from the PDP to ANPP and then to Labour Party, before hopping back to PDP? Are our people so intellectually destitute or are we just morally bankrupt? Is this hunger or famine?  

In what language could we best describe the one person least expected to mount the rostrum and canvass for votes before the Ekiti PDP gets it? What message are they sending to the police, the ICPC, the EFCC and the judges by voting for a known thief?

Governor Kayode Fayemi has his job well cut out for him during the campaigns.  He should just keep reminding the people of Ekiti of Fayose’s past. And if Fayose comes even close to winning the election, Fayemi should just leave Ekiti land because it would mean that even a goat would have beaten him.
 
By Abiodun Ladepo                            
Los Angeles, California, USA                      

 Oluyole2@yahoo.com

Our Campaign Will Be Scientific, Says Fayemi As He Inaugurates Campaign Office

Less than 24 hours after INEC lifted the ban on political activities in Ekiti State, the State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has inaugurated his campaign office in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital with the emphasis that his re-election campaign for the June 21 governorship election in the state would not accommodate brigands or thugs.


Rather, it is going to be scientific.

"People who know how wars are fought know that wars are first simulated. Scenarios are first built in various dimensions before you unleash it in its practical dimension and that is what has made this possible as a clockwork operation. We are hitting the ground running because we are ready. This is not going to be a campaign for thugs," he said.  

He said he and his team were able to hit the ground running because they were ready.

Going down memory lane, the governor explained that the journey had been arduous, but that by keeping faith his administration was able to triumph.


"God never said there would not be difficulties in the Bible, but in our party, APC, we don't see difficulties. We see solutions," said Fayemi.


He described his party's credentials as very impeccable, saying "we don't do 419 in this party. You know the party of 419. We shall soon get to their record of 419. It is crystal clear. There is no way that darkness will ever triumph over darkness. Ekiti people are people of light. That is what we represent." 


Commissioning the campaign office, Fayemi explained that the building had witnessed cries and struggles along the way, but that it ultimately witnessed more laughs.


Fayemi also explained the significance of the official colours of the campaign.

"You would see the dominance of blue which of course represents love and peace. You see a lot of red; energy, not blood. Energy, drive, commitment, compassion, not violence, not criminality. You also see a lot of white which represents purity. That is the purity of our minds and purpose."

Present at the inauguration of the campaign office and the unveiling of the official logo for the campaign were the Deputy Governor, Professor Dupe Adelabu, wife of the Governor, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, APC Vice Chairman in the Southwest, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, APC Chairman in Ekiti State, Chief Jide Awe, party chieftains, members and supporters, commissioners and other political appointees.

Earlier in the day, Governor Kayode Fayemi had committed his re-election campaign into the hands of God in a thanksgiving service at St. Martins Catholic Church in his hometown of Isan-Ekiti where he insisted that all stakeholders must ensure that the June 21 governorship election in the state is peaceful as no ambition is worth the spilling of anyone's blood.


He explained that besides thanking God for having brought him thus far, he and his family were also in church to offer prayers for peaceful campaign and the peaceful conduct of the election.

"No ambition, including my own, is worth the spilling of blood. I urge all our people to conduct themselves peacefully. This is a contest of ideas. We are running on a record. Ekiti people can see and feel what we have done. Those who feel they have better ideas should present their ideas to the people. It is the duty of our people to decide which direction they want to take in this election. I believe the security forces will work with us. If there is any election that should serve as a model for peaceful elections, it should be this one and I pray it shall be so in Jesus name. 

"In presenting our ideas to the people, we should have nothing to fear. Our people are intelligent. They are witnesses to the progress and development that Ekiti has witnessed since we have come on board. They would decide if they want to return to the era of one day, one trouble or if they'd rather continue to stay on the path of peace, progress and development. I have no doubt what decision our people would make," Fayemi concluded.


In his sermon, the Catholic Bishop of Ekiti State and a delegate to the ongoing national conference, Bishop Felix Ajakaiye, said there was no room for politics of rascality in Ekiti anymore.

Ajakaiye said what obtains in Ekiti now is politics of renewal, adding that politics of renewal promotes good governance.

Ajakaiye said: "In Nigeria, we kill our youth. Two Saturdays ago, we asked them to be writing exams on their laps. Is it going to be like this forever? That is why I say Ekiti State must be a role model. In a sane society, the Minister of Interior should have resigned, but instead they are using fire brigade approach. They are saying the families of those who died are entitled to three slots in the Nigeria Immigration Service." 

He corrected the notion that politics is a dirty game, saying there are only some dirty people in it.

Meanwhile, the people of Isan-Ekiti, the hometown of Governor Kayode Fayemi, under the Home Support Group, have held a solidarity rally in support of the governor.

They also donated a car to aid the campaign activities of the governor.

Addressing the throng of Isan-Ekiti people whose songs rent the air, Governor Kayode Fayemi said he was happy that he had not dragged the name of the town in the mud.

He thanked the people of the community for their love, support and prayers, stressing that the task of repositioning Ekiti State has not ended.

"I know the people of Isan will never let me down. I am their representative. On behalf of the people of Isan-Ekiti, I thank Ekiti people for being true to their name - the Land of Honour. The values that exemplify this land are the values that we will continue to promote. Those are the values we have promoted up to this point and those are the values we will continue to promote. This is not a journey that we embarked on of our volition. It is a God-ordained journey and by God all things are possible. Ekiti shall not go back to the days of political assassination. Ekiti shall go forward. Ekiti will progress. The journey to light will always overcome darkness. Ekiti shall not go back to darkness. Ekiti will forever remain in light," the governor said.