The collation of results by officials of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the Ekiti State governorship polls is ongoing.
INEC had closed voting and moved voting materials and manpower to State INEC Headquarters, Ado Ekiti for collation of results and announcement of winner tomorrow.
Election was held in the 16 local government areas of the state as voters turned en masse to elect a successor to Kayode Fayemi whose tenure will expire in October 2022.
Already, results of the Ekiti State governorship election has begun to trickle-in in Ekiti Central Senatorial District of the State, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is taking the lead.
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The party won in all the results declared so far from polling units in Ado Ekiti, the State capital, monitored by our Correspondents.
Closely following APC is the Social Democratic Party (SDP), while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) comes third.
Results monitored so far are as follow:
Ward 1, Unit 1:
APC 133
PDP 38
SDP 50
Ward 1, Unit 7:
APC 221
PDP 53
SDP 66
Unit 9 Ward one
SDP 41
APC 89
PDP 46
Ward 1, Unit 5:
SDP 60
PDP 35
APC 76
Ward 11 Unit 3:
APC 99
SDP 57
PDP 42
Ward 11, Unit 2:
APC 109
SDP 103
PDP 39
Ward 11, Unit 16:
APC 161
PDP 17
SDP 58
During the election, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested persons alleged to have engaged in vote-buying in the Ekiti governorship election.
Parading some of the suspects at the Oke Ori Omi Area Division of the Nigerian Police Force, the suspects were said to have been caught with monies allegedly used to induce voters.
This was as Kemi Elebute-Halle, governorship candidate of the Action Democratic Party (ADP) in Ekiti, alleged that other political parties are inducing voters with money in the ongoing election.
Elebute-Halle alleged that the APC, PDP and SDP bought votes with N10,000; N5,000, and N3,000 respectively.
The allegation was, however, countered by the agent of the APC and that of the PDP who certified that the election was smooth.
SDP agent, Bukunmi Oluwafemi, who spoke to journalists, said the exercise was peaceful, but observed that a particular political party was trying to do “see and buy.”
He explained: that, “voting is going on well. People are coming out to vote. There is a party that is trying to do ‘see and buy’ but we have cautioned them.”
Corroborating Oluwafemi, Yusuf Kehinde, the agent of the ADC, said, “They (voters) are showing their ballot papers to agents of a party and we said that shouldn’t be. A particular party is buying votes.”
But in a counter reaction, the APC agent at the polling unit, Muideen Fatayo, said there was no problem, noting that “everything is going well.”
About 749,065 residents of Ekiti State, representing 76 per cent of the total voters registered by the Independent National Electoral Commission participated in the exercise.
Although 16 political parties fielded candidates for the great battle, APC and the SDP were more feasible against the expectation that the main opposition PDP will give APC a run for its money.
The police said they deployed 17,317 personnel, while the Nigerian Civil Defence Corps deployed 9,747 officers and men for the exercise.
The Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Usman Alkali Baba said, “All the 177 wards and 2,445 polling units will be manned by appropriate manpower. Let me say this, the massive deployment is not to scare the citizens, but to protect the sanctity of the ballots and the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.”
