ABUJA – The Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) said on Sunday that the best candidate emerged winner of Saturday’s governorship election in Osun.
National Chairman of the party, Malam Bahsir Ibrahim, who stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, however, admitted that the election was keenly contested.
Ibrahim said that the result of the election was a reflection of the wish of the electorate in Osun.
“The incumbent governor, Rauf Aregbesola, was forced to fight hard in order to be re-elected unlike before when incumbent governors used to be certain of victory.
“This is a positive development in the nation’s democracy; politicians should be more accountable to the electorate in order to get their votes,” he said.
On the deployment of security personnel for the election, he said that the quantum was too much for election purpose in a peaceful state.
According to him, the security presence during the election in the state actually went beyond the pale.
Also reacting to the outcome of the election, a member of the House of Representatives, Mr Abiodun Balogun, said Aregbesola’s victory was an indication that Nigerians could vote for personality.
Balogun, who is a member of All Progressive Congress (APC) in Ogun, said “Nigerians now vote for personalities, not party; Osun people voted for Aregbeshola.’’[eap_ad_2]
Another House of Representatives member, Ifeoluwa Arowosoge, said that the election was free and fair and commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the success.
Arowosoge, an APC member in Ekiti state, told NAN that the party won the election due to its mass mobilisation of voters and the lesson it learnt from the Ekiti election in June.
He commended the security agencies for ensuring orderliness during the election, adding that the exercise was successful because INEC used authentic ballot papers “unlike the case of Ekiti.”
Similarly, Mr Osita Okechukwu, National Publicity Secretary of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), said that the victory of Aregbeshola was a victory for Democracy.
He said that the Osun election had set the stage for the 2015 general elections, stressing that “Democracy is the will of the people and not a revolution.’’ (NAN)[eap_ad_3]