Just like the June 12, 1993 presidential election that became a watershed in the history of elections in Nigeria because it was regarded as freest, fairest and most credible, the June 21 governorship poll in Ekiti State did not lack the qualities of being labeled a watershed in the history polls in the country.
The only difference between the two elections is that the former was for the presidency of the country, while the latter was for the governorship in Ekiti State. One thing is however, applicable to the two elections; they were both free, fair, credible and representative of the wishes of the people.
The judgment passed on the conduct of the Ekiti governorship election did not only come from local, but also in­ternational observers. They include the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), the United States Government, the British Government, the Canadian Govern­ment, the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), the CLEEN Foundation work­ing in conjunction with the DFID of the British Government which specifically looked into the security aspect of the ex­ercise, numerous local and international news channels and the media among others.
One may ask why the deluge of observers? The observers were many because of the interest generated by the poll.
It was obvious that the election was going to be a battle for supremacy between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The outcome was also expected to signpost what to expect in the 2015 elections. Not only that, it was a challenge to the so- called supremacy of the APC in the South West. In Ekiti, the APC came to power when the court nullified the electoral victory of a PDP administration on October 15, 2010. This is apart from the rivalry between the two as the dominant parties in the country.
From Ado to Afao to Iyin to Isan to Ikole to Omuo to Ijan to Ise to Ikere and all parts of the state, people trooped out en masse to exercise their voting right.
At the end of accreditation of voters, voting, counting, collation of results and the announcement of the final result, all stakeholders agreed that the exercise had gone well.
For instance, the Election Working Group, EWG, of the Nigerian Bar As­sociation, NBA, said the election was generally free and fair.
It said there was hope for the nation if the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, could maintain the transparent manner it conducted the poll.
“INEC must be commended for the successful conduct of the Ekiti State gubernatorial elections. The elections were generally free and fair. INEC rose up to the challenge and if they keep this up there is hope for the future.”
Also, the United States Mission in Nigeria congratulated INEC, security agencies and electoral stakeholders for the successful conduct of the election.
The Ekiti State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), which part­nered the local NBA on monitoring the poll, also commended the exercise.
For those raising issue over the heavy presence of security men, CLEEN Foundation, in an assessment of the election gave kudos to all stakeholders. The Programme Manager, Mr. Chinedu Nwagu, who briefed the press in Ado-Ekiti on the observation of the group during the poll, said though the election was conducted amid serious security concern, the performance of the security agencies should be commended.
So, when the final results were an­nounced and Mr Ayodele Fayose of the PDP was declared the winner of the election, it was not surprising that Dr Kayode Fayemi of the APC conceded defeat. He was seen as acting like a true sportsman who knows and believes that a loser today could be a winner tomor­row.
In a broadcast to the people of the state, Fayemi said; “If indeed this is the will of the Ekiti People, I stand in deference to your will. If the result of the elections is an expression of the voice of our people, we must all heed your voice.
“I have just spoken with my brother, Mr. Peter Ayodele Fayose, congratulat­ing him on his victory. In a few hours from now, I would be meeting the Governor-Elect to discuss the future of our dear state and how we would work together to institute a smooth transition programme.
If Fayemi did not want to act as a statesman by conceding defeat, did the expression of the people’s wish give him an alternative?
Fayose won convincingly in all the 16 local government areas of the state and Fayemi’s Oye Local Government was not spared.
The election across the state was adjudged to be free, fair and credible by Nigerians and non-Nigerians who played the roles of candidates, voters, observers, security providers, umpires during the exercise.
It was, however, a rude shock to the people of the state when spin doctors started posting materials online and in some dailies that the election was rigged.
One of the online publications, wrote:”Despite Governor Kayode Fayemi’s acceptance of defeat in the June 21 Ekiti gubernatorial poll… APC is pushing for Ayo Fayose’s victory to be challenged in court. Fayemi lost the election to Fayose, the candidate of the PDP, by a wide margin and promptly made a concession speech ─ considered rare for a Nigerian politician. The elec­tion was generally seen to be free and fair ─ although not without complaints about the militarisation of the state. However, a state government official has said “there was something fishy about the ballot paper and the ink that need to be challenged in court.
“We are currently gathering evidence. We have received several complaints from people about the hi-tech rigging that was perpetrated. Even though the governor has accepted defeat, that does not stop us from challenging Fayose’s victory in court if we are able to gather enough evidence to prove our case,” he said.
“The official said the ballot papers were designed in a way that made the thumbprints to disappear “within min­utes” while “pre-programmed” votes would later appear.
“In other words, all the votes that were announced by INEC were pre-programmed. That means the thumb-printing process was irrelevant. The votes were pre-allocated on the ballot papers through hi-tech manipulation,” he said, using the term “photochromic” to describe the technology allegedly used to produce the ballot papers. Pho­tochromism, in simple language, allows for transformation of chemical spices between two forms ─ meaning what you see can change to another form in seconds. It is a technology commonly used for eyeglasses. They could be plain in one moment and dark the next after absorbing electromagnetic radiation. The official did not explain how this technology can be used to alter voting on a ballot paper.
Efforts are currently being made by APC officials to test this allegation by experimenting with a few ballot papers, after which the party will decide on the next line of action”.
Why are we bad losers? Why don’t we believe that something good can come out of us or that we can do things without bending the rules?
For keen observers of the political situation in the state, history is only repeating itself. When Fayose defeated Fayemi’s political godfather, Otunba Niyi Adebayo in the gubernatorial elec­tion in 2003, that was how Adebayo congratulated Fayose after conceding defeat, but Adebayo was to later go to court to challenge Fayose’s victory. He was unsuccessful.
It is thus strange that after APC has conceded victory to Fayose, some peo­ple are now imputing something differ­ent. There is no doubt that this is going to be an exercise in futility as Judicial officers have learnt their lessons from the Ayo Salami saga and nobody would want to jeopardize his/her career.
Moreover, some people have started seeing Fayemi as a statesman and someone who still has a political future not only in Ekiti, but in Nigeria at large. Will he now allow himself to be pushed and throw away the people’s goodwill?
That is not all, what the spin doctors have failed to realize is that their claim is a direct indictment on INEC and the effort put in by Attahiru Jega and his team to ensure a free, fair and credible poll. Must we always discredit our insti­tutions? Can’t we just accept that these institutions are managed by people like you and me who would not also mind being commended for a good job? How was this photochromic miracle achieved without this leaking out especially to one or two people sympathetic to APC and who would have leaked the con­spiracy? Fayemi has accepted and it is obvious to all and sundry that he would have met with the leadership of his party before his concession speech.
Indeed, a major issue that came out of this election is on the person of the governor-elect. It is clear that most of what Nigerians and the media have been fed with were mere propaganda or how do you explain that a man who left power and after eight years, came back and still enjoyed the overwhelming support of his people. This is quite sig­nificant as any attempt to tamper with the will of the people either through frivolous litigations can lead to disrup­tion of public peace as the people who gave their support to Fayose would not fold their arms and allow anybody to overturn their will.
And a word for the APC leadership. You do not need any litigation; you have equally acknowledged the popu­larity of Fayose in Ekiti, which was what led to your working with him in the election that brought in Fayemi. Let caution be your watch word. Do not further alienate the people.
Hon. Yinka Amuda, a political analyst writes from Ado Ekiti

Ekiti poll: Why APC should allow peace to reign