Ondo Guber: How Obi, NLC Spoilt My Chances Of Winning – LP Candidate

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria Monday, November 18th, 2024

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Ayodele Olorunfemi, the candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the Ondo governorship election, has disclosed that Peter Obi and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) bastardized his chances of winning the election.

The African Examiner recalls that on Sunday, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced Lucky Aiyedatiwa, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as winner of the poll.

According to INEC, Aiyedatiwa got 366,781 votes in all 18 LGAs defeating his closest rival Agboola Ajayi, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 117,845 votes.

The LP candidate got 1,162 votes, making him finishing fifth from bottom in the 17-candidate off-cycle election.

It is worth recalling that on the eve of the election, INEC changed Olusola Ebiseni with Olorunfemi.

On September 27, the federal high court in Abuja instructed INEC to recognise Ebiseni as the lawful LP candidate and the party appealed the ruling, and the appellate court threw out the case for lack of jurisdiction.

According to INEC, it had restored Olorunfemi’s name as the LP candidate in accordance with the court judgment.

“The commission was yesterday 14th November 2024 served with the certified true copy (CTC) of the judgment of the court of appeal which set aside the judgment of the federal high court (FHC), Abuja division,” the statement reads.

“In obedience to the court order, the commission has restored Olorunfemi Ayodele Festus, whose name was first published as the Labour Party candidate for the 2024 Ondo state governorship election, and uploaded the same to our website for public information.”

Also, in the buildup to the election, Obi recommended Ebiseni and described him as “someone who believes in a Nigeria rooted in fairness, equity, and justice”.

“It is this conviction that propelled me to travel by road to Ondo state yesterday to campaign alongside our Labour Party Governorship Candidate, Hon. Sola Ebiseni — a candidate I believe possesses the competence and capacity to govern the State effectively,” Obi said.

Speaking with journalists Olorunfemi claimed that Obi and NLC ruined his governorship bid and also his last-minute campaign was poorly organised and ineffectual.

“My campaign for the election was neither here nor there. I have Peter Obi and the NLC to thank for that. They have scuttled my aspirations and chances to win this Ondo election,” Olorunfemi said.

“These people spoilt things for us with that PDP reject they wanted to force on the party. Their insistence on having Ebiseni on the ballot ruined everything for me.

“They just capitalised on the crisis between the Labour Party and the Nigeria Labour Congress to create problems.

“Can you imagine that Ebiseni wrote a letter to the court in my name without my knowledge, saying I have withdrawn from the race? They cannot exclude me from such a position.”

According to him, his chances of winning were slim after his reinstatement, adding that he is determined to “get his pound of flesh”.