Rigging: Oshiomhole Experiencing Post Traumatic Disorder — Fayemi

Ekiti State Governor, South-West Nigeria, Kayode Fayemi has lampooned the former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Comrade Adam Oshiomhole saying he’s experiencing post traumatic disorder.

Gatekeepers News reports that Fayemi said this in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Yinka Oyebode.

Fayemi said this in response over a reported claim that he once asked Oshiomhole to manipulate the party’s primaries.

Oshiomhole, While featuring on a programme, ‘Political Paradigm’ on Channels television on Tuesday, claimed that Fayemi told him in one of their meetings to impose his preferred candidate during the party primaries, which he rejected.

He said, “In one of the meetings I had with Governor Kayode Fayemi, he told me bluntly to my face that ‘chairman what we are saying is that you can go and conduct an election to fulfil all righteousness, but when we say this is the person that should emerge, just make sure he is the person that emerges.’

“And I told Fayemi that, ‘that would be your own portion, not me’.

“I cannot be used as an instrument of fraud, to invite people to buy forms when I have already decided, regardless of how people will vote, this is the man that will prevail.

“You want to use me for such a purpose, I said no, I said at worst, if you find the number to get rid of me as the chairman, I will rather leave the job with my honour than sacrifice my honour to keep the job.”

Fayemi dismissed Oshiomhole’s allegation as a figment of imagination and synchronised attempts to malign his uncompromising democratic credentials and hard-earned integrity.

He noted that he had never for once asked Oshiomhole to rig any intra-party election for him or any other individual, saying he has a stellar record of being a consummate democrat even in difficult times.

He challenged Oshiomole to provide the public with independently verifiable evidence of his unsubstantiated claims if it was true that the Governor approached him to manipulate election in his favour.

Fayemi urged members of the public to disregard the allegations by the former Governor as he was still experiencing a post- traumatic disorder on account of his removal as the APC chairman, which he said he was not responsible for.

The statement read, “The attention of the Governor of Ekiti State and Presidential Aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Kayode Fayemi, has been drawn to a spurious allegation by a former National Chairman of the party, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, that the Governor once asked him to rig an election in his favour.08

“The allegation, which was made on national television, is not only false, puerile and laughable, it is a figment of the imagination of the former APC Chairman as Governor Fayemi has never asked Oshiomhole to rig an election for him or any other person and never had any reason to ask for such.

“It is on record, Governor Fayemi was not responsible for Comrade Oshiomhole’s removal as Chairman of the APC. He has his ward executives and the courts to blame for that.

“He has always considered Oshiomhole a friend and political associate even if they had fundamental differences over his kangaroo approach of disqualifying Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, from the APC primaries and his unconscionable autocratic management of party affairs whilst he was chairman of the party.

“For the avoidance of doubt, Governor Fayemi has no reason to approach Comrade Oshiomhole for favours for any election. Governor Fayemi has a stellar track record of being a consummate democrat even in difficult times.

“Many Nigerians can easily recall his historic concession speech in 2014 in an election that was clearly lost to electoral sleight of hand at the behest of the then People’s Democratic Party (PDP) –led Federal Government.

“Others will also recall how he spent years in court patiently pursuing the retrieval of his stolen mandate between 2007 and 2010. He has demonstrated nothing but decency, decorum and fidelity to the rule of law in all his years in politics and public office.”