Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State on
Saturday cautioned the ruling All Progressives
Congress, APC, and President Muhammadu
Buhari to abstain from influencing tribunal
judgements in favour of the APC.
Fayose was reacting on Saturday to the tribunal
judgement that sacked Governor Nyesom Wike of
Rivers State and the one that ruled for a re-run
in Akwa Ibom.
“The seeming collaboration between the All
Progressives Congress (APC) led Federal
Government and a section of the judiciary is
worrisome and portends grave danger to the
corporate existence of Nigeria.
“This is worse than corruption that the president
claimed to be fighting,” Fayose said. The Governor added that “the desperation to
take over the South-south states of Rivers and
Akwa Ibom through the backdoor by President
Muhammadu Buhari and his APC, in preparation
for 2019, using the judiciary may, cause anarchy
in the country.”
Speaking through his Special Assistant on Public
Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka,
the Governor accused the APC and President
Buhari of another grand plot to rig the
forthcoming Kogi and Bayelsa states
governorship election using the newly appointed
Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu and
the Director General of Department of State
Security (DSS), Alhaji Lawal Daura.
He further described the suspension of the
appeal court judgment on Senate President
Bukola Saraki as part of the grand plot to use a
section of the judiciary to wrestle power from
those the Buhari’s presidency is not comfortable
with adding that the indefinite adjournment by
the appeal court smacked of interference from
the powers that be.
“There were widespread electoral malpractices
during the presidential election in the North, with
rampant under-aged voting. Yet, Dr Goodluck
Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) did not take steps capable of threatening
Nigeria’s corporate existence.
“Curiously too, in a State like Yobe where it was
established that the INEC Resident Electoral
Commissioner (REC), Abu Zarma received N15
million bribe from the Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to
the State Governor, Ibrahim Gaidam, Assistant
Superintendent of Police, Zakari Deba to
influence the State Governorship election, the
tribunal did not nullify the election,” he said.
The governor called on President Buhari to, in
the overall interest of Nigeria, tread cautiously in
his bid to consolidate power and prepare ground
for his possible re-election bid.
Governor Fayose, who reminded the President of
the wild, wild west of the mid 60s and the 1983
saga between late Chief Adekunle Ajasin and
Chief Akin Omoboriowo, which was orchestrated
by the then Federal Government, said: “the
consequences of the orchestrated plot to
prevent the people of Western Region from
having the government of their choice through a
fair and just election in 1964 should be a
watchful example for Nigerians in general and
President Buhari in particular.”
He appealed to the people of the South-south
not to be intimidated and discouraged,
expressing hope that the appellate court will
protect the wish of the people of Rivers and
Akwa Ibom States.
“Governors Wike and Udom, as well as the
teeming supporters of our party, PDP in Rivers
and Akwa Ibom States should not be deterred
and discouraged as I am sure that by the special
grace of God, they will laugh last,” the governor
said.