Senator Ademola Adeleke, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the early hours of today, emerged the winner of Osun State governorship election.
Adeleke beat his closest rival, Governor Gboyega Oyetola, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to emerge winner.
The election was held across the 30 local government areas of the state amid tight security with political parties adopting new methods of vote-buying.
It also witnessed huge turnout of voters as the electorate trooped out enmass to cast their votes.
Interestingly, as of press time, there was no record of violence.
Whereas the Osun State chapter of the PDP claimed victory in the election, last night, affirming that collated results from polling units confirmed its emerging victory, the ruling APC said the claim was capable of setting the state on fire.
15 candidates
The candidates, who took part in yesterday’s exercise, besides Oyetola and Adeleke, include a former Adeleke of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yusuf Lasun, of the Labour Party; Dr Oyegoke Omigbodun of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, and Dr Akin Ogunbiyi of the Accord Party.
Others are Munirudeen Atanda of the Action Democratic Party, ADP; Lukman Awoyemi of Allied Peoples’ Movement , APM, and Busuyi Ayowole of Peoples Redemption Party, PRP.
Oyetola, Adeleke, Akande, Omisore, others win polling units
Major political actors secured victory at their respective polling units.
As the result of the election trickled in, Oyetola won his polling unit.
Oyetola scored 545 votes against PDP’s 69.
His main rival, Adeleke, polled 218 at his polling unit in Ede-North against APC’s 23.
Similarly, a former Interim National Chairman of the APC, Chief Bisi Akande, won his Unit 012, Ward 4 in Isedo 1 in Ila-Orangun.
APC scored 140 while the PDP polled 117 there.
The National Secretary of the APC, Senator Iyiola Omisore, won his Polling Unit 003, Ward 1 in Ife East Local Government Area of the state.
The APC scored 192 while the PDP scored 168 there.
Disagreement
While the Osun State chapter of the PDP claimed victory in the governorship election as results trickled in, last night, affirming that collated results from the polling units confirmed PDP’s emerging victory at the poll, the ruling APC said the claim was capable of setting the state on fire.
A statement issued by the Caretaker Chairman of the PDP in the state, Dr Akindele Adekunle, said that “the party has secured majority as well as more than two third spread across the 30 local governments and area office”.
Adekunle noted that “the victory of the party at the poll is a product of mass mobilisation and grand coalition of people of Osun State against bad governance and insensitive leadership”.
He thanked the “people of Osun State for endorsing and affirming Ademola Adeleke’s governorship bid, the party sternly warns against any attempt to tamper with the result of the election.
“We want to assert that Ademola Adeleke has won this election overwhelmingly going by results at our disposal. We warn against any plot by some agents of chaos to doctor the results”.
But the Director General of the Campaign Council of Oyetola’s re-election, Senator Ajibola Basiru, described as “irresponsible the claim by the PDP that it has won the election which result is still being collated as we speak”.
In a statement issued in Osogbo, Basiru said: “The claim by the PDP was capable of setting Osun on fire.
“We warn the PDP to desist from making a frivolous and unsubstantiated claim about an election, which, as we speak, voting is still going on in some areas”.
Basiru called on the security agencies to take appropriate action in dealing decisively with the peddlers of false claim as they are setting the stage for violence and chaos.
“It has come to our knowledge that the PDP in a statement is already claiming victory for an election whose result is yet to be declared. We are not surprised at their claim because we know their antics”, he stated.
“Going by the result so far declared, there was no way PDP could lay claim to any victory. This is more so that in one of the Local Governments where the PDP candidate hails voting is still going on as we speak.
“Therefore, the PDP’s claim is tantamount to standing logic on its head. We appeal to our supporters and sympathisers in Osun and across the country to remain calm in the face of this obvious provocation.
“While we won’t do what the desperate people in the opposition PDP did by usurping the powers of INEC, we are however confident that with the positive results from the field at our disposal, the people’s support for Gov Oyetola will ultimately give him victory when the authority legally empowered to announce election results does so and he is declared Governor-elect.”
I’m confident of victory—Oyetola
Speaking immediately after casting his vote at Oloti Ward 1 Unit 2, around 11am, Oyetola expressed confidence of being re-elected.
He said APC will be re-elected by the people owing to his tremendous achievements in the last three and a half years in office.
Oyetola said: “I am very confident that I will be re-elected by the electorate, today, and by God’s Grace I will be celebrating the victory this evening.”
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