BY GBENGA ARIYIBI

ONLY three of the more than sixty registered political parties are actively engaged in the National Assembly contests in Ekiti State. The three are the ruling Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN); Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP). The likes of the Congress of Progressive Change (CPC) and All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) are also expected to make appearances here and there.

EKITI CENTRAL
This senatorial district appears to be the centre of attraction for the contest. This is because the district parades an array of gladiators who will slug it out at the polls.

Kayode Alufa (PDP)
He is a former General Manager of Ekiti State Housing Corporation, who hails from  the  ancient town of  Ijero Ekiti. This is the third time he will be vying for the race on the platform of the PDP, having lost in previous primary contests. Alufa has always been an active participant in the PDP since its inception. A factor that may work for him is the possible help he may get from the Minister of  State for Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Captain Caleb Olubolade (rtd). The candidate and the Minister are from the same town.
A major constraint according to party insiders is the paucity of funds available to the campaign.

Litigation (ACN)
If the  suit  instituted by  the current occupant of the seat, Senator Bode Ola at the Federal High Court in Abuja, is finally laid to rest, the party’s flagbearer will emerge.

For now, Senator Ola is holding the ticket of the party having obtained a court order compelling both INEC and the PDP to recognise him as the legitimate candidate instead of Mr. Babafemi Ojudu earlier endorsed by the party as the candidate.

Ayodele Fayose (LP)
A former governor of the state, Fayose defected to the Labour Party when he fell out with the PDP. The former governor, who hails from Afao-Ekiti has many things to his advantage.

One is the fact that he is a grassroots mobiliser who also enjoys immense goodwill.

Fayose resurrected from political oblivion through his leading role in the opposition of the former PDP government and his collaboration with the ACN in the campaign to oust the Segun Oni government.

His earlier presumption that his collaboration with the ACN in actualising the mandate of Dr. Kayode Fayemi would lead to his emergence as a consensus candidate of the two parties failed to materialise.
The Ekiti Senate Central contest remains among the most watched contests in the country.

EKITI NORTH SENATORIAL DISTRICT

Senator, Ayo Arise (PDP)
Senator, Ayo Arise is the candidate of the party in the senatorial district.He is from Oye Ekiti, headquarters of Oye Local Government area of the  state which is incidentally the same local government of Governor Kayode  Fayemi, Secretary to the State Government [SSG] Dr Ganiyu Owolabi and the ACN candidate for Ekiti North Federal Constituency 1.

Arise was before his election to the Senate in 2007 a member of the then AC and fully disclaimed any inclinations to the party with his more than passionate solidarity with ousted governor of  the state, Engr Segun Oni during his last days in office.

Arise faces a great challenge in overcoming emotions against him arising from the role he played in the relocation of the Federal University from Ikole Ekiti to Oye  Ekiti, his hometown. He now faces the reprimand of the people of Ikole Ekiti from where he got the bulk votes that took him to the Senate in 2007.
Arise who is married to an Ikole princess is now considered as an outcast and  the ‘’enemy and betrayer’ of the people that rescued him and brought  him to power.

The incumbent senator also faces the challenge of not having the factor of a supportive administration in the State following the inauguration of Dr. Fayemi as the genuinely elected Senator for the district.
The  has  presented  Olubunmi Adetumbi a reknowned agric_ economist and a  famous consultant with a golden opportunity of breaking through. Adetumbi hails from Ifaki  Ekiti, the same town with the former governor of the state, Engr Segun Oni.

He has a strong family root in his town based on the good job his late  father  was said to have done  in the town. Though, not a moneybag  like  his political rival  but the fact  that his party is in government may be of benefit to him.

In addition to this it is gathered that the lfaki  community have vowed to give him what is known in the political parlance as ‘home boy advantage’   as it was extended to Oni during both the 2007 election and 2009 governorship election re-run respectively

LP
The LP has Chief Segun Akinwumi as its candidate. Akinwumi  a two time commissioner in the state during the regimes of Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo and Ayo Fayose  is a grassroots man to the core

He is from llejemeje Local Government area of the state,  a  local government known for turning in massive votes during elections. He is an ally of the former governor Ayo Fayose and he could count on the support for Fayose to boost his chances.

EKITI SOUTH SENATORIAL DISTRICT

Senator Sola Akinyede, PDP
The incumbent senator, Sola Akinyede was elected by the PDP during its primary to  fly the party’s ticket at tomorrow’s election. Akinyede , a lawyer  hails from Ode Ekiti. It is generally alleged that he rode on the back of popular positive sentiments for his father to win the election in 2007. His late father, a lawyer too, was one of the few educated elites  in the whole of Ekitiland, that fought for the creation of old Ondo State .

But the distingished senator, though, a robust debater and one of the movers in the National Assembly may not find it easy as it was during the 2007 election because  his party is no more in power in the State and he may have to spend a fortune to actually convince many people that he needs  to go back to the senate.

Chief Anthony Adenii, ACN
The ACN has presented Chief Anthony Adeniyi for the Ekiti South senatorial contest. Adeniyi who is from Ikere Ekiti , he is  one of the lawyers that prosecuted the case of Dr Kayode Fayemi at the tribunal.

The fact that he is contesting from a ruling party and  being an indigene of Ikere Ekiti, the biggest town in the senatorial district may be of help to him. But  it is still in doubt whether he could mobilise enough fund to mobilise his people.

Biodun Fasakin, LP
Biodun Fasakin is from Ise Ekiti, and he is  the national legal adviser of LP. Fasakin who is an Akure, Ondo State based  legal practitioner is apparently the youngest senatorial candidate. He is likely to pull votes in both Ise and Emure Local Government axis of the state. He also has the support of the youths but his major challenge is said to be the deployment of logistics.