Ondo
State Governor Olusegun Mimiko; his wife, Oluwakemi and others after
the announcement of election results in Ondo ... on Sunday. Government
House.
| credits: Government House
President
Goodluck Jonathan on Sunday congratulated Governor Olusegun Mimiko of
Ondo State for earning a second term in office through his victory in
the governorship election on Saturday.
Mimiko is a member of the Labour Party.
He defeated the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Olusola Oke; the Action
Congress of Nigeria candidate, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN); and others.
President of the Senate, David Mark; his
deputy, Ike Ekweremadu; and the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, also congratulated Mimiko.
While the PDP commended the people of
Ondo State for voting Mimiko for a second term in office, the ACN said
it would make its position known after its post-mortem of the
election.
Akeredolu, however, faulted the result
of the election, saying it was not “a reflection of the people’s wish.”
Spokesperson for his campaign organisation, Idowu Ajanaku, on Sunday,
said through a text message to our correspondent, “The election was
rigged in conjunction with security agents. There was no election in
Idanre. The election in strongholds of ACN were cancelled.”
Ajanaku said that despite the cancelled areas, ACN’s outing on Saturday was impressive.
“The good showing of ACN in the election shows we are back in this state for good,” he said.
Congrats galore
The Independent National Electoral
Commission’s Returning Officer for the state, Prof. Adebiyi Daramola,
officially declared the election result at the INEC Office, Alagbaka,
Akure at exactly 1.21pm on Sunday.
According to the final result by INEC,
the ruling Labour Party candidate won the election, having polled
260,199 votes. The PDP and ACN candidates scored 155,961 and 143,512
votes respectively.
The ACPN candidate had 1806 votes; All Nigeria Peoples Party, 1,461; APS, 751; PNPP, 2949 and the CAP candidate polled 735.
The Congress for Progressive Change candidate scored 1931; NCP, 823; NSDP, 1103; PDC, 21,361; and PPA, 1652.
Jonathan, in a statement by his Special
Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, also commended Ondo
electorate, INEC personnel and security agencies for ensuring that the
election was peaceful and successful.
The statement reads, “President Jonathan
assures Mimiko that the Federal Government will continue to engage
constructively and positively with the Ondo State Government in
collaborative efforts to achieve faster socio-economic development and
better living conditions for people in the state and all other parts of
Nigeria.”
In separate congratulatory messages on
Sunday, Mark and Tambuwal described the election as free and fair,
saying it was democracy at play.
Mark, in his statement, said Mimiko
“should be magnanimous in victory and should carry all along. The
mandate is a challenge for greater service delivery to the people.”
He expressed satisfaction that Nigerians had come to appreciate democracy through free and fair elections.
Tambuwal, who pledged the cooperation of
the House of Representatives to the governor, said Mimiko’s victory was
a manifestation of the people’s trust in his leadership abilities.
Urging those who have grievances to
pursue their cases according to the law, he stressed the need for them
to accept the result in good fate and cooperate with the winner in the
interest of the people.
Ekweremadu described the re-election of
Mimiko as “people’s verdict and democracy in action.” He noted that the
Ondo election, in many ways, indicated that the electoral reforms
carried out by the 6th National Assembly through constitutional
amendment was yielding greater results by the day.
He said, “In the end, it is not just
about who won, but about a democratic, violence-free and mature
electoral process where the people freely express themselves and realise
their will that count above everything else.”
A statement by the National Publicity
Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, on Sunday said, “How better do
Nigerians say no to the drumbeats of tribalism and political narrowness
than what the people of Ondo State have just done with their votes?
“It is a quantum forward leap for those
who understand the dangers of undue manipulation of national diversity
for narrow political whims and a huge set back, utter rejection for the
champions of ethnic politics.”
Metuh said though the PDP was not
declared the winner of the election, the party was still happy with the
performance of its candidate who, he said, joined the race late.
He also commended INEC and the security
agencies for the peaceful conduct of the poll and urged them to learn
from any observed loophole so as to continue improving in future
elections.
ACN reacts
But the ACN, in a statement by its National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande, said it was scrutinising the result of the election.
The statement reads, “As a party of
democrats, we in the ACN have always known that the choice of who
governs has always been that of the people in situations where the
electoral process is transparent and credible.
“Therefore, all politicians worthy of their salt must always expect victory or defeat.
“We recognise that it is the sovereign
right of the people to decide what kind of government they want. This is
the challenge of democracy.
“Our party believes that there was and
still is need for change in Ondo State. Thus, our party will study
carefully the general details of the result with a view to taking a
final position.
“Our party will continue this post
mortem analysis of the lapses in all the institutions involved in the
conduct of the Ondo election.”
National Chairman of the Labour Party,
Chief Dan Nwanyanwu, said Mimiko’s victory had established the fact
that the LP had done well for the people of Ondo State in the last
three-and-half years.
Governors speak
Governors Emmanuel Uduaghan(Delta);
Seriake Dickson(Bayelsa); Peter Obi(Anambra); and Abdulfatah Ahmed
(Kwara) also congratulated Mimiko for retaining his position.
Uduaghan said Mimiko’s victory was a testimony that free and fair elections were possible in our democracy.
He said, “He (Mimiko) should strive to continue to build on the path of development he started in his first term.”
In a statement, Governor Dickson
described Mimiko’s victory’s as a clear reflection of the tremendous
support, confidence and goodwill he enjoys from his people”.
Obi, who is the Chairman of the
South-East Governors’ Forum as well as the Vice-Chairman of the Nigeria
Governors’ Forum, said, “The victory of Mimiko is yet another testimony
that democracy is taking root in our country. The people have spoken;
the best candidate has won.”
Ahmed in a statement by his Chief Press
Secretary, Abdulwahab Oba, described Mimiko’s re-election as a
demostration of steady but sustainable growth of Nigeria’s democracy.
He urged INEC to apply the lessons it
learnt from the Ondo State election to deepen ‘its impressive records’
in the conduct of subsequent elections in the country.
Mimiko, who dedicated his victory to all
lovers of democracy, described the election as free, fair and highly
credible. He said the poll conduct had raised the hope of a better
future for the country and urged his fellow contestants to join hands
with him in the task of building the state.
Rigging claims
When contacted on the ACN’s
allegation of rigging using security forces, the Commissioner of Police,
Mr. Mohammed Ndabawa, said the party should challenge INEC in court on
the matter.
Ndabawa, who spoke with one of our
correspondents on the telephone, said, “I am a commissioner of police;
that is not my problem. They should direct their question to INEC and
challenge the result in the court.”
The returning officer in Saturday’s
governorship poll, Daramola, said that while 1,638,950 people registered
as voters, 624,659 votes were cast.
Giving the analysis of the votes, the
returning officer said that 594,244 votes were the total valid votes
while 30,415 votes were invalid.
He said, “I, Prof. Adebiyi Daramola
certify that I was the returning officer for the Ondo State governorship
election. That the election was contested and that the candidates
received these result (stated above).
“That Dr. Rahman Olusegun Mimiko, having
satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby certified as the
winner and he is hereby returned as the governor.”
The LP candidate won in a total number
of 13 local government areas. The PDP, which came second, won in Ilaje
and Okitipupa LGAs and the ACN candidate won in Owo, Odigbo and Akoko
South West LGAs.
Earlier, the Collation Officer for Ilaje
LGA , Dr. Olayinka Oladele of the Federal University of Technology,
said the results from 32 pooling units in the council were cancelled
for various reasons, including mutilation and alterations on result
sheets.
Mimiko, was first declared the governor
of Ondo State on February 24, 2009 by the Appeal Court in Benin City,
Edo State, which was presided over by former President of Court of
Appeal, Justice Abdulahi Umar.
Mimiko had contested the April 14
governorship election of 2007 with former Governor Olusegun Agagu of the
PDP, but Agagu was declared the winner by the INEC.
But Mimiko headed for the election
petition tribunal. He was declared the lawful winner of the poll which
the appeal tribunal also upheld.
