… Late disclosure of primary mode favours Akeredolu

Rotimi Akeredolu

By Dayo Johnson

INDICATION has emerged that the incumbent governor Rotimi Akeredolu of the All Progressive Congress in Ondo state may yet win the governorship primary election slated for Monday.

The adoption of indirect mode of primary has given the governor an edge over other eleven aspirants in the party.

Eleven other governorship aspirants voted for direct primary but the party instead announced indirect late on Friday.

Vanguard findings showed that over 3,000 delegates will vote in the election to decide the party’s candidate.

Akeredolu, Isaacs Kekemeke, lfe Oyedele, Olusola Oke, Olayide Adelanmi and Segun Abraham are the front runners in the poll.

Sources within the party in the state informed vanguard that the category of delegates are the automatic delegates who are former governors, former deputy governors, former Speakers and deputy Speakers, serving national and state Assembly members.

Others are the 17 state working committee and the 72 extended state executive of the party.

This category of delegates appeared favourably disposed to the aspiration of the governor.

13 of the state working Committee are for Akeredolu just as the executive committees of the each of the local government areas were put in place by either a Commissioner, special adviser or other interests sympathetic to the governor.

An aide to one the aspirants regretted the late announcement of the mode of the primary which he said was in favour of the incumbent governor.

The aspirant’s’ confidant denied moves by his Principal to lobby for the deputy governor but said, talks were ongoing as at this morning.

READ ALSO: Ondo PDP primary: Group alleges deputy gov offers delegates $1000 each

He told newsmen in Akure that ” I think we all undermined the Governor thinking he is politically naive but we have all seen the unfortunate development.

“First, we were not even in our Unity forum because most of the aspirants had ego issues and could not harmonise their interests.

“Some of us warned them that they should concentrate on the delegates but they insisted on staying put in Abuja and the result has come out very painfully that not only did Abuja deliberately delayed till the last minute, the aspirants had become uncontrollable to the extent that they started insulting the Excos who are the delegates.

“With this development, how possible is it to now convince those you called rogues to come and vote for you. Meanwhile, Akeredolu was working like someone who had already seen the answers to the questions by working on the delegates.

“For now, the wise ones have to play the game wiser because the truth has come out that Abuja wants Aketi back, even Lagos is helpless.

“So there are some of the aspirants who are already scrambling to be running mate but that has even created problems for us”, he said.

Meanwhile, findings showed that only six aspirants are visible on the field and they are; incumbent Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, lsaacs Kekemeke, Olusola Oke, Ife Oyedele and Segun Abraham.

** How the candidates stand

Findings by Vanguard showed that Akeredolu may win 70 percent of the total votes cast in the election.

ln Northern senatorial district which is Akeredolu council area, he would get about 80 percent. Others like Kekemeke, Oke and Abraham will also pull some weights.

In the central senatorial district, which is the council of the state party chairman, Ade Adetimehin and the Commissioner for Culture, Yemi Olowolabi, the incumbent governor may get 70 percent

Still in the central senatorial district, Akure South- Despite the fact that this is the local government of Akeredolu estranged Secretary to State Government, lfedayo Abegunde who resigned recently, Akeredolu may still garner 65% of the votes.

In Akure North- with the support of the Minister of State for the Niger Delta, Senator Alasoadura. Akeredolu may get garner 75 percent of the votes while in Ifedore, Ondo East and Ondo West-Akeredolu may get 70 % of the votes.

Oke and Kekemeke will slug it out in the central too

In the southern senatorial district which is the stronghold of Oke, Kekemeke, Oyedele and Odimayo. They will share the votes here but Oke will get the highest number of votes.

The four aspirants would garner votes here but then Akeredolu with supports from Odigbo, Ese – Odo where the information and Orientation commissioner Donald Ojogo hails from, Okitipupa where SUBEB state chairman Princess Oladunni Odu and Education commissioner, Femi Agagu would garner votes for their principal.

But Oke will win ilaje with 60 percent of the votes while Akeredolu and other will share 40%.

However, reports had it that talks are ongoing to the effect that some aspirants may step down for themselves.

If this realignment work out the permutations may change.

Aides to Akeredolu ruled out ganging up against their principal by the other aspirants noting that three of them are already jostling to be his deputy.

Reports had it that Akeredolu had reached out to many of the aspirants including Oyedele over the weekend on the need for them to work together.

Oyedele reportedly met with Akeredolu Saturday night in Akure.

Akeredolu has said that he was ready to apologise to anyone of them he might have offended since he assumed office in 2017 in order to allow peace to reign in the state

Akeredolu said this when he met with the reconciliation committee of the party led by the Governor of Niger State, Abubakar Bello in Akure, the state capital.

According to him, “We must allow for peace. Let us get all of us, the aspirants, to sign that whoever wins, others will support him.

He declared that “Anybody I have offended I will apologise to the person. We must allow peace.”

Vanguard News Nigeria