The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has concluded its governorship primary election in Ekiti. At the end of the exercise, a renowned medical expert, Dr. Wole Oluyede, emerging victorious.
Oluyede was declared winner in the early hours of Sunday after a keenly contested election held in Ado-Ekiti.
NewsBits reports that 535 delegates, drawn across the 177 wards in the State, took part in the election. The poll, which commenced around 10:30 pm on Saturday night, was concluded at exactly 1:49 am on Sunday.
The Chairman of the Primary Election Committee, who also doubles as the Lawmaker representing Gombe North Senatorial District, Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo, declared Oluyede as the winner with 279 votes to defeat Funso Ayeni, who polled 239 votes, and Funmilayo Ogun, who scored 17 votes.
An aspirant, Peter Obafemi, stepped down for Oluyede, noting that his decision to withdraw from the race was not for personal gains but the peace of the party. He described Oluyede as a man of integrity, who, according to him, has the ability and agility to take the party to victory if he emerges as the party’s candidate.
In his acceptance speech, Dr. Oluyede described the outcome as a collective triumph for all members of the PDP, commending the spirit of fairness and transparency that characterized the process.
The candidate expressed gratitude to the party’s national leadership for their role in ensuring a credible primary, singling out the National Chairman, Ambassador Iliya Damagum, and the PDP Southwest leader, Engr. Seyi Makinde, for their commitment to a level playing field.
He vowed to restore hope, rebuild trust, and reclaim Ekiti from the grip of misrule under the All Progressive Congress (APC), urging citizens to unite in the mission to move Ekiti forward and return good governance to the state.
An aspirant, Funsho Ayeni, acknowledged the efforts of the party but noted that the process was marred with manipulation, promising to make use of the internal mechanism to make corrections.
