Ekiti 2018: Oyegun, APC NWC overrule South West leaders on direct primary

• Ojudu withdraws from race

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, and members of the National Working Committee (NWC), after series of meetings, overruled the suggestion of APC leaders in the South West that the rescheduled primary election of the party in Ekiti State adopt direct primary process to forestall the repeat of the Saturday, May 5 incidence.

The May 5 APC primary was disrupted by some party agents who were protesting perceived manipulation of the process by some members of the election committee in favour of one of the aspirants. The primary election violently ended inconclusive.

This precipitated the intervention of party leaders from the South West. Accordingly, party leaders in the South West on Tuesday, 8th May, 2018 held a meeting in Abuja with the 33 Governorship Aspirants that contested the primary election to deliberate on the way forward. Present at the meeting which held at the Lagos State Governor’s Lodge, Asokoro, Abuja, were Chief Bisi Akande, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, Otunba Niyi Adebayo and Chief Pius Akinyelure.

Participants at eh meeting deliberated on how to conduct a free, credible and transparent primary election. The aspirants reached a consensus on direct primary election to allow APC card carrying members to exercise their rights in choosing the party’s candidate for the July 14 governorship election in Ekiti.

The aspirants conceded that the South West leaders should hold talks with APC National Chairman, John Odigie Oyegun, on a new approach to the primary election. They had given the zonal leaders the mandate to negotiate the possibility of adopting direct primary for the conduct of the rescheduled primary election initially fixed for Friday, May 11, said to be prescribed by Article 20 of the party’s constitution to enable every card-carrying member of the party vote for an aspirant of his or her choice, rather than the delegates primary. The aspirants believe Direct Primary election is more transparent, less monetised and energizes the democratic system through the participation and involvement of the generality of the party members.

However, Dr. Kayoed Fayemi, Minister of Solid Mineral Development, one of the governorship aspirants, was said to have walked out of the meeting when the direct primary option was being considered.

When the South West leaders later held a meeting with APC National Chairman, Ekiti State Chairman, Chief Jide Awe, and two representatives of the Aspirants, Engr. Segun Oni and Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele. The national leadership resolved that given the extent of planning and logistics involved and the closeness of the deadline for the conduct of primaries by all political parties in Ekiti State as well as submission of names of candidates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), it would be better to go by the decision of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party to conduct a fresh Indirect Primary Election in Ekiti State on Friday, 11th May, 2018. The National Chairman and Governor Tanko Al-Makura, Chairman of the Primary Election Committee, had promised that they would put new and extra measures in place to ensure a restoration of the integrity of the electoral process aimed at producing a credible Candidate with the highest number of votes.

The NWC also shifted the primary election to Saturday. More so, one of the aspirants, Babafemi Ojudu, has withdrawn from the race, accusing APC leaders of manipulating the process for a particular aspirant.

The Ekiti State Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has directed all political parties to submit names of their respective candidates for the governorship election.