Chairman of the APC Electoral Committee in Ekiti, Gov Badaru returned former SSG, Biodun Oyebanji as the winner of the election
By Kehinde Okeowo
Former Secretary to the Government of Ekiti State, Hon. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji has been declared as the winner of the All Progressives Congress (APC) gubernatorial primary poll held on Thursday, in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.
He emerged as the governorship candidate of the APC in the state after defeating seven other aspirants and will now fly the flag of the party in the forthcoming Ekiti State governorship election.
Oyebanji polled a total of 101,703 votes to defeat his nearest rival Mr. Kayode Ojo, who scored 767, and six other aspirants who contested the election.
The other seven contestants had earlier announced they will be boycotting the primary due to alleged plans to manipulate the election process to favour another aspirant said to be anointed by Governor Kayode Fayemi.
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The scores of the other seven aspirants are; Mr. Kayode Ojo, 767 votes, Sen. Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, 706 votes, Sen. Dayo Adeyeye, 691 votes, Hon. Femi Bamisile, 400 votes, Hon. Bamidele Faparusi, 376 votes, Hon. Demola Popoola, 239, and Hon. Olu Afolabi, 47 votes.
Chairman of the APC Electoral Committee for the exercise, Governor Badaru, declared Hon. Biodun Oyebanji, as the candidate of the APC for the governorship election, having scored the highest number of votes in the election.
The Kebbi State governor said out of the 183,560 registered APC members in the state, 107,877 voters were accredited for the primary election while 104, 983 votes were eventually counted during the exercise.
Some returning officers, while giving account of their stewardship during the announcement of the results, reported that cases of violence were recorded in some parts of the state.
The affected areas are; Ekiti East, Ward 2, and 5, in Irepodun/Ifelodun, 5 wards were affected, in Gbonyin local government, 3 wards were affected and a car destroyed.
In Ijero local government, the election did not take place in 1 ward, in solidarity with one of the aspirants from the area.
Hon. Abiodun Abayomi Oyebanji was born on December 21, 1967, in Ikogosi-Ekiti, and served as the Secretary to the Government to the incumbent governor before resigning to contest the primary election.