As the preparations for the 2015 general election gathers momentum, a former Senator and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti State, Senator Ayo Arise, has warned Governor Ayodele Fayose against destroying the party by his alleged resolve to impose candidates indiscriminately.
Arise, who is gunning for the senatorial position in Ekiti North senatorial district, accused Fayose of already compiling the list of delegates that would emerge in Satueday’s PDP congress, who would thereafter elect candidates to fly the party’s flags for the national and state assemblies’ election at the primaries.
Speaking in Oye Ekiti, Arise posited that Fayose had allegedly shut the doors against some aspirants vying for House of Assembly by single-handedly picking all the 26 candidates among his cronies,without recourse to the party’s constitution.
Also complaining about the perceived shoddy manners the primaries are being handled, a former member of House of Representatives, Hon. Fatimat Raji-Rasaki, cautioned the leadership of the PDP against subverting the will of the party members.
Arise said: “It seems as if Governor Fayose has been possessed by demons immediately he took over as the Governor of the state. As we speak, he has drawn the list of 26 House of Assembly members, thereby shutting out other aspirants.
Even four aspirants from Ikole /Oye federal constituency have been schemed out of contention for the House of Representatives.
“Aside from this, he instructed my challenger, Hon. Duro Faseyi, to draw the list of delegates for Ekiti North primaries, which shows that I have been rigged out already. I supported Fayose before the election, but as a party man, I will not fold my arms and allow him ruin this party,” Arise declared.
Absolving Fayose of wrongdoing, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Idowu Adelusi, who spoke on his behalf, said the governor had not reneged on his earlier stand, which is free and fair primaries, notwithstanding whether some aspirants are posing as his favourites.
He said: “Everybody in the party will stand for primaries where the delegates will choose who will represent them. To be a candidate of the Governor does not exclude you from the primaries. He does not have an approved list of delegates. Nobody will be treated as a sacred cow,” Fayose assured.
Arise stressed further that the party might face serious protest votes in the coming election, except necessary steps are taken by the leaders at the national level to stop this alleged executive rascality.
Arise added: “This is an opportunity for protest votes which we should not allow to happen. If this is not corrected, it will be difficult for the PDP to win elections. God has worked in Fayose’s life by bringing him back the second time, he should allow the same God to work in the lives of other party members.”
Adelusi, who said nobody will be deprived of the rights to contest, said: “Senator Ayo Arise is a respected leader of the party. If he feels aggrieved or has noticed that something is wrong, he should meet with the Governor or resort to party mechanism rather than going to the press.”
Meanwhile, the Ekiti State Government yesterday denied any plan to sack civil servants as is being peddled on social media by the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), saying the trimming down of the state ministries was intended to inject efficiency into the civil service.
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