Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has expressed satisfaction with the massive turnout of voters across the 16 local government areas of the state, even as allegations of vote-buying triggered a clash between supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Ilawe Ekiti during the ongoing governorship election.
Governor Oyebanji, who cast his vote at about 11:30 a.m. at Okelele Ward 6, Unit 3 in Ekiti West Local Government Area, described the election as peaceful, orderly and largely hitch-free.
According to him, reports from across the state indicated that residents turned out in large numbers to exercise their civic responsibilities.
“The report across the state has been positive. The election is going on smoothly, people are exercising their franchise and they are happy. The turnout is impressive and I’m glad that people are listening to my call that they must come out and exercise their franchise,” the governor said.
Oyebanji commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies for the conduct of the exercise while urging voters to remain patient with electoral officials over minor glitches.
“You know with all processes there will be glitches and they have assured me, and I believe them, that all those glitches will be attended to. I just appeal to our people to exercise caution. They have told me that nobody will be disenfranchised,” he added.
Reacting to allegations of intimidation by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, the governor dismissed the claims as unproven.
“He who alleges must prove, so it remains in the realm of allegation,” Oyebanji stated.
The governor also expressed confidence that his party would achieve its projected 500,000 votes benchmark.
“We are going to get that. We should, if the processes work well and everybody votes, we should cross that mark,” he said.
Meanwhile, tension briefly erupted at Unit 4, Ward 2, in Ilawe Ekiti as supporters of the APC and ADC engaged in a heated argument over alleged vote-buying.
The governorship candidate of the ADC, Dare Bejide, who voted at the polling unit, alleged that some politicians attempted to distribute money to voters but were stopped.
Bejide claimed that an APC chieftain arrived near the polling unit in a Toyota Jeep loaded with cash intended for distribution, a situation he said led to a confrontation and eventual scuffle.
During the fracas, one ADC supporter reportedly sustained a head injury and was rushed to the hospital for treatment.
Speaking with journalists, the ADC candidate alleged that money meant for distribution had been brought to the area in a sack before it was intercepted.
“Now you have the sound, the audio, one of them brought money here, they brought it in a sack but we intercepted her. She called the council chairman, and the council chairman came here also.
“And in a bid to defend themselves, they kept on saying that some ADC members were also distributing money. But they couldn’t mention anybody.
“But we know where the money was kept. And in a bid to retrieve the money, she called the council chairman, and that caused a lot of commotion here,” Bejide alleged.
The ADC candidate further claimed that one of his aides was assaulted during the incident.
“You can see one of my aides was beaten by the security men they brought. The boy had been rushed to the hospital now,” he added.
Despite the disturbance, Bejide commended INEC officials for their diligence and professionalism.
“The electoral personnel have been very diligent, and everything is going on very well. You realise that when you came here a few minutes ago, there was pandemonium here, but the moment they saw you with your camera, they ran away,” he said.
Voting and other electoral activities later continued at the polling unit despite the earlier commotion.
