The All Progressive Congress, (APC), yesterday faulted the option A4 electoral system Governor Ayodele Fayose has adopted for the choice of candidates for the Local Government election coming up in December.
The party also watered down Fayose’s anointed governorship candidate, Olusola Kolapo, deputy governor of the state, saying his choice by the governor does not pose any threat to other aspirants.
State chairman of the party in Ekiti, Jide Awe described the screening of the aspirants with option A 4 as a manipulation tailored towards assisting the anointed candidates of governor Fayose to emerge.
Alleging that the governor has manipulated the system to favour his own anointed, Awe who was represented by his Vice-Chairman, Mrs. Kemi Olayele, said: “The of our aspirants in APC is far better than the best Fayose can offer
“The smallest aspirant among ours can beat Olusola who Fayose is forcing down on his party’s throat and that is why we will send him parking in 2018. InAPC, we don’t deceive the people by adopting a system that ensures that it is only our choice that emerges. We assure all our candidates of free, fair and transparent primaries. We don’t allow a system where it is only the people that we have ordered to queue behind our candidates that eventually emerge. Ours is a transparent system.”
The part chairman made the remarks while receiving the 25th aspirant for the 2018 gubernatorial race, Ajayi Olatunji Olowo who declared formally his intention at the party secretariat yesterday.
Olaleye told Olowo: “Meet with the grassroots, we have given you that ticket to campaign for votes from the masses. Your ability to speak our native talent is an advantage for you. It is what some people now in government have been using to cajole our people.
“No one on the platform of APC will lose out in this race. I am assuring you that a free and fair primaries would determine who gets the ticket.”
Speaking about his ambition, Olowo who is a legal practitioner, said the adoption of the Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, Prof. Kolapo Olusola as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), has automatically put the APC on the spot on the need to uphold zoning in the coming election.
Olowo said the APC-led government under former Governor Kayode Fayemi did excellently well in terms of infrastructural provision in the
state, pointing out that the only snag had been that the government didn’t fraternize well enough with the downtrodden masses.
People from the south senatorial district have been advocating for zoning of the governorship ticket to the zone in 2018 on the basis of equity, justice and fairplay.
On the large number of aspirants coming out for the governorship election in APC, Olowo said: “most of them are pretenders who will not even pass the screening of the party for the primaries.
