Ekiti State Election: Money Doeth All Things By Adedokun Seyi
The root of evil is money but we cannot do without it. We call such a necessary demon that we have to love, care for, keep well and even find a room for it to be separated from theft. We just don’t know that the evil that money causes is not what we cannot control, but it has been fashioned in a way that we misunderstand the reason for its existence and we use it without control. Ekiti election has come and gone, leaving people with the speculations that they have allowed to enter the little space in the mind. Speculations are good, but when it tends to deviate from one side, always to favor the other, it is really good to face it openly and get the fact. What you need to know is that the winning was a building planted on the innocence and ignorance of the inhabitants. Ekiti state can be said to be known based on observation, as a home of educated illiterates, sandwiched with ruler ship spirit of shameless dramatists. It is only funny why a demon still seeks for justification while his home still remains hell as Fayose has decided to go to court the same way it happened some years ago.
WHAT HAPPENED ON JULY 14?
The wisdom of the All Progressive Congress (APC) overwhelm that of her sister party, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as both chief parties went on an adventure of sailing their treasures on the mind of the people. The conquest of Fayemi was not as a result of people’s love for the party, APC or him and even if the PDP had won, it wasn’t for the trust they have in it, but the game was rolling, changing and shaking according to how the line of monetary cacophony stretches. The PDP wanted to change the change, but the APC wanted to regain the land and so there was a clash between the landlord and the state, meanwhile, the land suffers most of the ground beating.
The government of Ekiti state, as seen on twitter sent a sum of three thousand naira to some people, according to Saharareporters, identified as workers. As soon as Saharareporters reported the scene, people started throwing stones of abuse on the owner, Sowore and a man just decided to confirm it for them by sending a picture copy to the chats. Some people were of the opinion that Governor Fayose was too fast to act, probably he forgot that actions may come, but reactions, as equal as they may be, will be opposite and the result may be devastating. Fortunately for the PDP which had thought it had no rival than Dog’s bark, a rival that is more that a “second wife” arrived and Mr. Peter the rock started ranting that he owns the state. Obviously, the mandate of the state has your voice when you still swim under that bowl of immunity while committing impunity, but when the cloak becomes an open clad and impunity becomes de-immunized, the first thing one’s body will do is to complain about its state, then when there is no cure, death follows.
On July 14, the grasses of Ekiti were hailing the power that hovered over them and they started singing to the trample of the shoes of incumbency. Polling Units were arranged, NSCDC officers and other things were on ground. Voters were hanging around, waiting for their names to be pasted. In fact, these people were not rushing – Ekiti people were ready to cast their votes, probably that is the educated good about them: they believe it is their right and they go for it despite the hardship they face, someone must rule. You can’t just imagine how the table turned and everything appeared in a rush. As the voting process started, the security officers who were among the thirty thousand dragons deployed before election, not to war against insecurity of Plateau or safe the people of Sokoto state, but to make sure there was security in Ekiti election, went into hibernation or action-comatose so to say. The issue of ballot stealing and disruption can be first blamed on the security officers. Their duty in that forest of superiority is to make sure sticks didn’t enter any eyes or anyone did not influence the choice of any voter, but with that black mirror in their eyes, they were still unconscious of their own dignity, they were deflowered by the status quo.
It was time to exhibit the bidding. At a local government called Ise/Orun, the rate at which money spread like kite cannot be overemphasized. Each polling unit has been given a particular amount. At this local government, it was hard to see PDP win a polling unit. The method of sharing was very strategic as it was not done on the queue, but after voting through monitoring, these deflowered voters were been directed to a separate surgery room, where their innocence would be plastered with five thousand naira. The People’s Democratic Party also had the same technique of sharing: little wonders why what God spent days to create could be bought for such ridiculous amount. This writer was placed in this local government to observe the election and you don’t need to ask how he knows about it.
FAYOSE OR OLUSOLA?
This is a different problem from the former. Since the moment of campaign till elections day, people were mentioning Mr.Fayose’s name. At the Polling Units, some would ask “did you vote for fayose or fayemi?” and the problem had started already. Many people continued on ultimate search for Fayose’s name on the paper, while Olusola’s identity was boldly begging them to look to his side, his title and achievement. The funniest thing in Ekiti that is full of easily tailed children is that both names start with “Fa” and their faculties which have little or no orientation came crumbling like wall of Jericho. Many could not remember the name to vote for anymore and here came a voice from the inner-dark room that sent some a policeman through two women standing by the window to tell a lady saying, “Tell her that she voted for the wrong party”. This was an experience at Onisa’s house, Idi Ose II, Ise/Orun local government. How could she have seen someone from a dark place? The lady made a mistake, she was not corrected by the power that be, but she was exposed by the same black sense.
If you ask how Dr. Kayode Fayemi won, one of the reasons is the relationship of the remote people with the names and not the parties. Some didn’t remember the party of a particular candidate and they cannot read, but despite the government of Fayose for two terms, they still couldn’t marry the tone for a while. By the way, we all know our primary rhymes that what I see, I remember, the banner of Fayemi erected on the T-junction of Aafin was almost taller than the glory of Ekiti which these people have seen every morning, thought about on and on, and then come into the conclusion that this man is the man of the people even if he pretends to be.
Governor Fayose didn’t help issue at all as his noise bowled the name of his deputy. At least, Olusola is different from Fayemi. If such margin had been lifted by lowering the voice of the governor, maybe, just maybe the cat will kill the lion.
THE CONCLUSION
That is one local government explained, but it applies to many in the sixteen local governments. Some argued that APC won in one local government and it wouldn’t have been announced as the flag bearer of Ekiti’s next four years affair. Meanwhile, it is obvious that these ones are like piglet that has not stopped milking. They hear what was said and spread the information like a urinating style of a boy at his unit age or like pollen grain topping the stigma. This election was a battle between bidders and it was done, dusted and taken out off the shelf. The best thing for Ekiti indigenes is to work towards how the state will not be stained with non-payment of salary and/or insurgence of herdsmen on farmers as prophesized by Olusola’s prophet. Just for a reminder, don’t listen to them if they say the election was not free and fair or it was rigged. The definition of free and fair is equality and both parties had their thugs, observers and money, so what was not fair? There is another term in election bid called “buying and selling”, it was just the principle of supply which means that the higher the price, the higher the quantity supplied.
Adedokun Seyi is a campus journalist at University of Ibadan. He can be reached on [email protected] and 08108992965.
