Governor Gboyega Oyetola has been declared the winner of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Primary Election held yesterday in Osun State.
Declaring the results of the election this morning, the Chairman of the Primary Election Committee and Governor of Kwara State, Abdurasak Abdurahman said Oyetola polled 222,169 to defeat the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola's backed candidate, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti who polled 12,921.
The third candidate, Hon. Latin Yusuf polled 460 votes.
The total registered voters for the exercise, according to Abdurasak is 408,697, those accredited is 247,207 while total votes cast and valid is 235,550.
However, supporters of both Gov. Oyetola and the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, have expressed mixed feelings on the conduct of the election.
While Oyetola’s supporters described the exercise as peaceful and impressive, Aregbesola’s faction said the exercise was full of irregularities.
Commenting, the Deputy Governor of the state, Mr Benedict Alabi, described the exercise as peaceful, while the turnout was impressive.
Alabi, at his Ward 006 in Ikire, Irewole Isokan Local Government area, said the party members were orderly and that there were no reported cases of violence.
“I am happy we have a peaceful, free and fair primary.
The fact is that there is only one candidate that is contesting the primary in Osun and that is the incumbent governor.
“We have the other faction with two aspirants, but they are not visible here,” the deputy governor said.
Also, the Commissioner for Finance, Mr Bola Oyebamiji, commended the impressive turnout as well the peaceful conduct of the primary.
Oyebamiji, who spoke at his Ward 009 in Ikire, lauded the efforts of security operatives for ensuring a peaceful atmosphere for the primary.
The commissioner said he was confident that Oyetola would emerge as the winner of the primary.
Meanwhile, the factional Chairman of the party, loyal to Aregbesola, Razak Sanisile, said the primary was “full of anomalies” .
Salinsile told newsmen at his Ward 004, Isale-Oba in Iwo Local Government Area of the state, that the party’s register was not made available to them.
“Up till today, we have not seen the register of the party, which is against the rule of the game.
“At least, each of the aspirant is expected to have a copy of the register of members, but none of them has it.
“We raised it at the stakeholders’ meeting at the party secretariat.
“Many of our supporters cannot find their names on the register.
“All these anomalies will tell on the outcome of the election.
“I see it as a mere exercise, a waste of time and resources,” he said.
Also, the Chairman of Ward 008, Ilesa East Local Government, Adegoke Saheed, a loyalist of Aregbesola, said the process was full of irregularities.
Saheed alleged that the party’s register used for the primary was different from the one used during the registration, pointing out that names of their members were missing on the register.
He said the absence of Aregbesola, whom he claimed was on an official assignment by President Muhammadu Buhari, did not allow his complaint to receive attention.
“It was in the morning we learnt that Rauf Aregbesola has gone for an official assignment given to him by President Muhammadu Buhari.
“That is why he was not around to monitor or participate in the process.
“If the minister has been around, they will listen to him with all my complaints. They wouldn’t have used the power of incumbency they used,” Saheed said.
However, the Chairman of the Primary Committee, Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazak, commended the peaceful conduct of the exercise.
AbdulRazak, who spoke to newsmen while monitoring the exercise in Iragbiji, lauded the party members for their impressive turnout and peaceful conduct.
He said that peaceful conduct contradicted the expectations of many over the exercise.
“Let me congratulate the people of Osun State and members of APC.
“What is happening here shows that the party is alive and strong. You can see that from the huge turnout.
“If you open the pages of newspapers today, what was painted was a picture of war in Osun.
“But, the primary election has been peaceful. I congratulate the people of Osun and all the aspirants. They have all done well,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola, has registered his displeasure with the election which he described as full of shortcomings.
Aregbesola, also a former governor of the state said reports are now being collated from members of his factions across the state.
After a careful study of the reports, the minister said legal action would be considered.
Aregbesola said this in a statement by his media adviser, Sola Fasure, titled, ‘Hold your heads high’.
Among the shortcomings identified by the minister included vote-buying, absence of result sheets, absence of INEC officials, and disenfranchisement.
He, however, urged the party members to remain peaceful, assuring them that the credibility of the election would be challenged.
The had been tension over the fierce battle for the sole ticket of the party between the Governor of Osun State, Gboyega Oyetola, and a former Secretary to the State Government, Moshood Adeoti.
Adeoti, a former state chairman of the party, is the anointed candidate of the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.
Oyetola was the chief of staff to Aregbesola when the latter served as governor of the state for eight years.
However, the relationship between the governor and the minister has deteriorated to the extent that they now belong to different camps of the party in the state.
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