Ahead of the Ekiti State governorship election, Biodun Oyebanji has won the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election.
Gatekeepers News reports that Biodun Oyebanji, a former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) has defeated other aspirants to emerge the winner of the APC primary election on Thursday.
Oyebanji polled 101,703 votes, followed by his closest challengers, Ojo Kayode who garnered 767votes, while Opeyemi Bamidele polled 760 votes and Dayo Adeyeye had 691 votes.
Jigawa State Governor and Chairman of the Primary Election Committee, Mohammed Badaru made this announcement after the votes were counted.
With the outcome of the primary election, Oyebanji will be the APC’s standard-bearer in the governorship election to be conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on June 18.
He is a seasoned administrator who has served in at least three governments since the creation of the state in 1996 by the late Sani Abacha.
The APC governorship candidate served as the special adviser on parliamentary affairs in the administration of Niyi Adebayo, a former governor of Ekiti; he was Chief of Staff to Kayode Fayemi, the incumbent governor, in his first term.
According to reports, Oyebanji is believed to have the backing of Fayemi and Adebayo.
Earlier, a Senator representing Ekiti Central, Opeyemi Bamidele, asked the APC to cancel the primary election, alleging that those on the primary election committee are aides of Fayemi, who are collaborating to ensure Oyebanji gets the party’s ticket.
Subsequently, seven governorship aspirants including Bamidele, Kayode Mojo, Demola Popoola, Femi Bamisile, Bamidele Faparusi, Dayo Adeyeye, and Afolabi Oluwasola have expressed dissatisfaction with the process, stressing that the exercise would not be fair.
Despite the calls for cancellation, the State’s chapter of the APC while insisting that there was a level-playing field for all aspirants, said the exercise would go on as scheduled.
However, Badaru after announcing Oyebanji as the winner, said the election was transparent and devoid of any manipulation, adding that the method for the exercise was agreed by all aspirants during a stakeholders meeting held on Wednesday.
