Ekiti 2014 & 2018; My Predictive Thoughts And Preemptive Expectations, respectively.

By Sulaiman Kazeem.

At the dawn of the Governor Kayode Fayemi led administration in Ekiti, only a few indigenes who were resident in the State and also understands the peculiarities of the grassroots politics in the Ekiti had predicted that the brightness of the rising sun would dim when it gets to the North pole, and would not be allowed to rise again, when it is sun set.

Well, this is not to say that others who mere political observers and not necessarily resident in Ekiti or indigenes of the 'Fountain Of Knowledge' thought otherwise.

Indeed, as the sun moved from the East to the North pole, before moving to the West, the Governor Kayode Fayemi led administration was fast loosing its popularity and support from the people of Ekiti. It was glaring that the former governor has been unable to flush his style of governance down the throat of the people of Ekiti, because the people were of the opinion that his style of governance was a non populist one and maybe not stomach friendly.

Looking into the past, through the windows of present. It became evident that the former governor was going to suffer a defeat in his reelection bid, when Mr. Peter Fayose, who was an estranged governor of the State but inarguably a grassroots politician expressed interest in contesting in the 2014 Ekiti governorship election, because Kayode Fayemi has already lost almost everything that he needed to win his reelection bid.

Fast forward to the dusk that preceded the dawn of the election, the handwritings on the wall were legible and were not written in favour of former Governor Kayode Fayemi. Of course, the script that countered and dissolved the rigging structure of Former Governor Kayode Fayemi was written and acted by the 'power brokers' in the then national ruling party, the PDP.

To avoid ambiguities, please be informed that the political party with the highest number of rigged votes wins elections in Nigeria. After all, aggrieved candidates who lost to unpopular candidates can proceed to the election tribunal to seek recourse, while disgruntled supporters may either go cold or get bullied by security agencies. Unfortunately, this is the reality of the day.

No doubt, it was a stomach infrastructure driven campaigns, with lots of people smiling to the bank from the emergency 'money abattoir', but as much as many believed that the 2014 Ekiti governorship election was rigged in favour of Governor Fayose, others that beg to differ are of the opinion that Governor Fayemi's defeat was nonnegotiable, considering the odds. Inarguably, the internet never forgets.

In brevity, the election was conducted, and the then incumbent governor, Mr. Kayode Fayemi lost his reelection bid to Governor Peter Fayose. The election results has been recorded as the worst defeat ever conceded by a sitting governor in Nigeria, if not in Africa.

For now, I beg to be silent on the performance of Governor Peter Fayose led administration - successes and failures. We shall discuss this in due time. However, I must say that the records are there and can be verified.

Mr. Fayemi emerged as the winner at the controversial primaries of his political party, the APC, and is contesting against the incumbent Deputy Governor to Governor Peter Fayose. Prof. Kolapo Olusola is believed to be a loyal servant to the incumbent governor and may not deviate from his boss's populist approach to governance.

Would Mr. Kayode Fayemi preside over the people of Ekiti again, just like King Nebuchadnezzar and Governor Peter Fayose, after a depose, is a mystery that only time can unraveled.

Has anything changed? Would the people who denied him his reelection bid reconsider their decision?

While you ponder on those questions and find answers, let me share my preemptive expectations.

Political observers and analyst had predicted the victory of Mr. Kayode Fayemi at the primaries of the APC, but many are still in the darkroom as to what is about to happen in Ekiti State.

Considering the makeup of the APC election planning committee for the 2018 governorship election in Ekiti State, and how and why the primary election of the APC was conducted to produce Mr. Kayode Fayemi, you won't be wrong to say that the APC is up to something.

FYI, in the said committee are former members of the PDP, who orchestrated the 2014 gubernatorial election in Ekiti State, in favour of the incumbent governor, many political analysts to include the writer of this article are of the expectation that the forthcoming governorship election would be very similar to the previous one.

Again, the choice of a 74 year old as a running mate for Mr. Kayode Fayemi could dim his chances of winning the election. Well, this is not to say that the choice of a young man as a running mate for Prof. Kolapo Olusola is a pointer to the victory for the PDP.

Today, Mr. Kayode Fayemi's chances of winning the 2018 Governorship Election In Ekiti State is not as bright as expected, but that is not to say that he is a push over for Prof. Kolapo Olusola.

Twitter: @steamnotes
04/06/2018

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