The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has consolidated the victory recorded at the 2018 governorship election with a resounding success at the 2019 general elections. ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA, in this piece, examines how Governor Kayode Fayemi’s impressive performance influenced the APC’s triumph during the parliamentary polls.
The opposition believed that his victory in the 2018 governorship election was a fluke. But, the electoral victories that followed have confirmed his position as the undisputed political heavyweight champion of Ekiti State.
After grabbing the gubernatorial crown, Governor Kayode Fayemi, has consolidated his hold on politics of Ekiti State by ensuring victory for his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the just concluded general elections.
It is on record that the APC won Ekiti State for President Muhammadu Buhari and the party went ahead to clear all the three Senate seats and the six House of Representatives seats during the first round of the general elections on February 23.
The APC further showed that it is the dominant party in the Land of Honour by grabbing all the twenty six House of Assembly seats in the last round of the general elections held on March 9.
That the broom party won the general elections by over 70 per cent showed that it has warmed its way into the hearts of the electorate who had earlier given it the governorship seat in 2018.
The progressive bloc broke many records in Ekiti in the last general elections in that that was the first time it would win all the available seats in one fell swoop.
Recall that the party, after losing the 2014 governorship election, lost in all cycle of elections conducted in the 2015 general elections to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
In the general elections conducted four years earlier (2011), the then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) was in power in the state at the time but the PDP still managed to win the presidential election conducted that year leaving all the National Assembly seats to the ACN.
The result of the House of Assembly poll for 2011 showed that while ACN won 24 seats, PDP managed to grab the remaining two seats.
Having considered the historical antecedents of general elections in Ekiti in the last eight years, it is expedient to x-ray factors that made the clean sweep of the 2019 general elections possible for the APC.
The APC leaders in Ekiti mounted a vigorous campaign across the length and breadth of the state, showcasing the achievements of the Buhari-led Federal Government and the state government led by Dr. Fayemi to the electorate.
The governor marketed the APC presidential candidate, Senatorial, House of Reps and House of Assembly candidates with gusto in his capacity as the leader of the party in the state.
Fayemi, on various campaign trails, urged the electorate to vote the party’s candidates for the good works being witnessed in the state to continue and for the state to enjoy many benefits from the Federal Government.
The Deputy Governor, Otunba Bisi Egbeyemi, spearheaded house-to-house campaigns in his hometown, Ado-Ekiti, the state capital leading other party leaders to canvass for votes for party’s candidates.
It was no surprise that the APC won in all the 13 wards including some areas of the state capital never won by the progressives since 1999 which contributed to huge haul of votes for the party in all the elections.
The wife of the governor, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, added a tantalizing spice to the campaign with her colourful road shows across all the nooks and crannies of the state ahead of the election.
The open truck used by the Ekiti first lady which reached every hamlet, village and town, served as the mobile campaign podium from where other APC women sang, clapped, danced and educated the electorate especially the womenfolk on how to vote at the elections.
Mrs. Fayemi’s emphasis on the use of the index finger known in local parlance as “ika ilabe” to thumb print ballot papers was believed to have contributed to why Ekiti recorded the least number of invalid votes across the federation which aided smooth collation and made the state the first to conclude the presidential collation in the country.
A major factor behind the positive turnaround for the APC was the perceived performance of Fayemi since staging a historical comeback to power in 2018.
The general consensus among the electorate in Ekiti State ahead of the 2019 general elections was that Fayemi has performed well in office since he was sworn in last year.
With his governance mantra being “Reclaiming Our Land, Restoring Our Values,” Fayemi has gradually won back the trust and confidence of the Ekiti electorate with life-changing policies that had boosted their standard of living.
Despite meeting enormous challenges on assumption of office including an all-time low morale in the civil service, a huge debt burden, infrastructural deficit, high rate of unemployment, abandoned projects and a burden of expectations from the masses, Fayemi had slowly and steadily attended to the myriads of problems solving them one after the other.
Before his return to power, civil servants were owed arrears of salaries which were not regular but they now received their salaries to time and Fayemi had not owed them since mounting the saddle.
The governor also ensured that one month out of the arrears owed by the immediate past administration was paid to the long suffering workers with an assurance that the remaining arrears would be paid as the financial situation of the state improves.
Unlike what it used to be under the immediate past administration, retirees now receive their monthly pension simultaneously with civil servants’ salaries. The governor’s decision to be offsetting outstanding arrears of gratuities with N100 million every month also gladdened the hearts of the pensioners.
Policies so far rolled out by the governor which are believed to be people-friendly contributed in no small measure to the superlative performance of his party, the APC, at the polls.
Shortly on assumption of office, Fayemi released N200 million as car and housing loans to teachers in public schools, abolished education levy imposed by the Fayose regime and also restored free education in government-owned primary and secondary schools.
It is on record that Fayemi restored the monthly running grants of civil servants stopped by his predecessor with the gesture bringing smiles to the faces of workers.
The governor also released N146 million for the payment of rural teachers’ allowance and special allowance to teachers teaching core subjects.
Workers and pensioners who have been enjoying these goodies since Fayemi came back to office formed themselves into voluntary campaign groups for the APC and voted massively in favour of the party and its candidates at the general elections.
They now see Fayemi as the “real friend of the masses” who is working hard to take care of various segments of the population despite the lean resources of Ekiti.
The Ekiti chief executive paid N227 million WAEC fees for 13,390 SS3 students in January and also went ahead to pay N24 million administrative charges for WAEC candidates in March lifting a huge burden on the shoulders of parents and their wards.
The Fayemi administration purchased JAMB forms to students with exceptional O’ Level results cutting across the 16 local government areas which enabled many indigent students opportunities to seek admission to tertiary institutions.
Besides, the APC government procured furniture, books and other instructional materials to pupils and students in public schools.
Another policy of Fayemi’s government which won voters to the side of his party was the Free Health Mission to towns and villages known locally as Ulera Ekiti. The scheme which cost several millions of Naira reached eleven out of the sixteen council areas of the state for the first phase.
Thousands of residents suffering from ailments like hypertension, diabetes, malaria, dental and eye defects were treated free and given drugs and this boosted healthcare delivery in the grassroots.
Besides, the state government in collaboration with the Federal Government also sponsored free surgeries for about 405 cataract patients in February to save them from blindness at a cost of over N20 million.
Another masterstroke from Fayemi’s bag of goodies for the electorate was the release of N194.3 million to 37 communities to complete their abandoned self-help projects through the Ekiti State Community and Social Development Agency (EKSCDA).
Fayemi insisted that as witnessed during his first term, development must not be restricted to the state capital but must reach all parts of the state including the far-flung and remotest parts of the state.
Traditional rulers, chiefs, community leaders and the people who came from the communities spontaneously danced with their dummy cheques during the presentation ceremony singing the governor’s praise to high heavens and promised to repay with votes at the general election.
The governor equally facilitated a training and empowerment programme for 6,300 youths in collaboration with the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) as part of activities to mark his first 100 days in office on January 24.
Contractors are back to various sites to complete abandoned projects like the International Civic Centre while work has commenced on new projects like Ado-Iyin Road.
The assurance that good governance has returned to Ekiti was the reason why the residents chose APC at their various polling units at the general elections.
The popular refrain on the streets of Ado-Ekiti and other communities ahead of the general elections was that “Fayemi had made work easier for all the APC candidates at the polls.”
It remains to be seen whether Fayemi and his party will sustain the momentum ahead of the 2022 governorship poll and 2023 general elections.
- Ogunmola is Special Assistant (Media) to the Deputy Governor.