Ekiti State Governor-elect Biodun Oyebanji and Deputy Governor-elect Mrs. Christiana Afuye have received their Certificates of Return from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The certificates were issued yesterday by the National Commissioner in charge of Ekiti, Oyo and Lagos States, Sam Olumekun, at the state headquarters in Ado-Ekiti.
Similarly, winner of the Ekiti East by-election conducted simultaneously with the governorship election, Oyewole Fatoba, also got his certificate from INEC.
Olumekun said that issuance of the certificates was in line with Section 72 (1) of the Electoral Act, which stipulated that INEC should present certificates to governor-elect and deputy governor-elect within 14 days of being elected.
He added that the commission had done its best to deliver a credible poll, and promised it will audit the conduct of the exercise and utilise the lesson to improve on the July 16 governorship election in Osun, and the 2023 general elections.
“We are presenting these certificates today because the candidate scored the highest number of votes and met the constitutional required spread across the 16 local government areas,” he said.
Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Adeniran Tella congratulated Oyebanji and Afuye, and urged all stakeholders to cooperate with INEC to further democratise the process, by playing positive roles in electioneering process.