‘Ekiti should vote wisely on June 21’

In this piece, Rotimi Opeoluwa enjoins the people of Ekiti State to vote for a candidate with an antecedent of service and record of honour and integrity during the governorship election scheduled for June 21.
The speculation had been rife for some time that Abuja, nay the ruling People’s Democratic Party, (PDP), had long concluded plans to “capture” the Southwest at all cost, including the use of “janjaweed tactics” in 2015. Some say, it is fait accompli, given the re-emergence of Ayodele Fayose in Ekiti and Senator Iyiola Omisore in the State of Osun.
Some newspapers say Fayose has “regained his groove”, but some commentators say it is not yet uhuru for him, citing Anambra and Ondo polls as examples. Those who hold this view say fayose’s emergence is diversionary, adding that the grand objective is to ensure that Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele (MOB) of the Labour Party, who they say, has a presidential endorsement to sail through.
Arguably, whatever anxieties some have about Fayose are not misplaced, given that he was governor between 2003 and 2006 when he be strode the state like an emperor. His rule was iron-fisted. He never tolerated dissent. For Fayose, it is either you are for him or against him. With him, there was no luxury of a middle ground. He outlawed it. He was simply a tornado, leaving in its trail wailings and gnashing of teeth. During Fayose’s Administration, people were serially killed in
broad daylight. Five protesting students from the College of Education Ikere were killed. It happened on March, 16, 2004. We recall the killing of Dr. Ayo Daramola. Tunde Omojola was brutally murdered in Ifaki-Ekiti.
He simply went berserk. He bore his fangs everywhere. He and his ragtag supporters played god. Traditional rulers were routinely harassed and insulted. He savagely dealt with politicians, especially those who do not share his understanding of politics both within and beyond his party. To differ with him was to court trouble. The university community was not spared his venom. Inferiority complex drove him mad. He engineered the removal of Professor Akin Oyebode, a world acclaimed International Law expert, on flimsy grounds as Vice Chancellor of the University of Ado-Ekiti. Oddity, which was his style, was elevated as an instrument of state policy. He relished brute force and ensured that intimidation of perceived opponents went unabated.
The fiasco that characterised his reign between 2003 and 2006, before his impeachment leaves a sour taste in the mouth. “Paradise was lost” under his supervision and the tragedy is that he makes light these infractions. Some of his supporters chant that he has changed, but he is still visibly gabby. He exhibited that much in the build-up to the PDP primaries and has flaunted it as a virtue ever since.
He is yet to come clean on why he was impeached on October 16, 2006 by 22 out of 24 members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly.
He maintains that he has changed. I ask, “change from what to what”? It is a known fact that the leopard never changes his spot. Fayose represents a grave danger to the sanity and good neighbourliness, which currently pervades the state.
Some say there is no indictment against him. True, what about justice denied? That Fayose walks free today does not obviate his conviction in the court of public opinion.
With Fayose’s emergence, it happily gives room for a measure of comparism between him and the incumbent, John Kayode Fayemi. What a world of difference! The former was a huge deficit; the current, an asset. The current is studious and highly methodological, the former is lousy. JKF is a promise still at dawn. One dispenses violence as a currency of his political engagement; the other restored peace and amity. Fayose is incorrigible. JKF is civil, amenable, intellectually stimulating and very articulate. You can disagree with JKF, argue with him and still have your head unbowed. But the former governor does not have the temperament for good conduct. JKF explains, but the former governor is dismissive and rude. In JKF, it is safe to say here is a gentleman in whom there is no guile. That cannot be said of Fayose. He is a divisive character JKF is a unifier.
Fayose is toxic style. Things have changed since he returned. The PDP secretariat was torched. Some JKF campaign banners across the state were shredded. Given Fayose’s style, it is right to assume that Armageddon is around the corner.
Fayose is already sure of victory, but he must be reminded of how he lost woefully in his last electoral contest. The then Action Congress senatorial candidate, now Senator Babafemi Ojudu, trounced him silly. The polity is heated up not because of his oratory prowess, not for this promise to drive the state to higher ground but because of his notoriety and appetite for anarchy. This is no time for indifference. No, the moment calls for vigilance. The dog is poised to return to its vomit. Hs deficiencies will make him resort to untoward tactics. It is simply not his fault.
We dare not ask about his dubious performance as governor, we are only told that he has “experience”. He trumpets that much too. Certainly, his experience includes impunity, looting and debasing our common heritage as highly ethical people. More of his experience includes masking his credibility challenge to the undiscerning. Can anybody say he has a demonstrable ability to govern, let alone inspire the confidence of Ekiti people? Remember his impeachment from office was greeted with spontaneous joy across the land.
His re-appearance was greeted by a cocktail of violence. But, typical of the PDP, the family affair mechanism has been applied. Fayose has recommended some for ministerial slots and there is now the peace of the graveyard, since the PDP remains, “the chop-chop party”. Peace is a cherished commodity in Ekiti. We beseech the enfant terrible to maintain some decorum in his delusional race to the government house. This appeal become imperative, given that only yesterday the governor’s convey was allegedly attacked by thugs that poured out of the Fayose Campaign Office.
Democracy no doubt is intriguing. Imagine its puzzling twist and turns and how such a character well known for abnormality will seek the people’s mandate, yet again after dehumanising them. It is simply ironic. Good enough the electorate know both JKF and Fayose and have seen both in the saddle. In the coming election, Fayose shall be retired for the good and sanity of all.
Opeyeoluwa, is a legislative aide to Senator Babafemi Ojudu and South West Co-ordinator for Young Patriots.