Ondo Guber Polls: Battle Of The ‘Great Ifes’
11,000 Policemen Deployed, Markets Closed
IT is “The Battle Of The Great Ifes” today as the trio of Olusegun Mimiko, Rotimi Akeredolu and Olusola Oke, all alumni of the Obafemi Awolowo University, slug it out in the grand finale of the titanic tussle for the soul of Ondo State.
No fewer than 11,000 policemen, drawn from eleven State Police Commands have been deployed to provide security during today’s election.
While Mimiko of the Labour Party (a.k.a Iroko Tree) has vowed to rout all opposition, Akeredolu of the Action Congress Of Nigeria (CAN), has boasted he would defeat the incumbent. Oke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on his part sees the two as mere also-rans.
The election, which may turn out to be the most policed electoral exercise in the country also has an unspecified number of personnel from the armed forces mainly the Nigerian Army, the Navy and the Air Force.While the soldiers will be deployed on land, naval ratings and marine policemen would take charge of the security of the two riverine local councils of Ilaje and Ese-Odo on the state’s coastal stretch as Air Force helicopters would be deployed for aerial surveillance and the movement of sensitive electoral materials to areas with difficult terrains.Apart from this, contingents of other para-military outfits like the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the Customs, Immigration and Prison Services as well as the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) with regular policemen will mount security at the 3,007 polling units.It was gathered yesterday that each of the units will have at least four security operatives attached to it as soldiers would mount road blocks and patrol the streets to enforce the restriction order while a large number of plain-clothes agents drawn from all the intelligence services will mingle with the crowd of voters to ensure compliance with the Electoral Act.
The Inspector-general of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, who has relocated to the state to coordinate security, had earlier disclosed that “Five units of mobile policemen will be deployed in each of the senatorial districts to ensure adherence to the restriction; 10 mobile units will be on standby in each of the local governments.“20 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) will also be deployed, while members of the counter terrorism unit will be on ground to provide security at the polling units and collation centres.”
Three Commissioners of Police have also been deployed to man each of the three senatorial districts of the state and they are to be supervised by not less than two Deputy Inspectors General of Police (DIGs) who have already arrived at the state capital.
The newly deployed Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Indabawa, who, for the purpose of the poll, was posted from his Rivers State Command to replace the Ondo Police boss, Danladi Mshebwala, yesterday charged the policemen to ensure a hitch-free exercise in their various units and areas of operation.He told journalists that the command was ready to maintain law and order and that policemen have been briefed to apprehend anybody, no matter how highly placed, who runs foul of the law during the exercise.Indabawa also warned troublemakers to stay away from Ondo State as “security forces will not hesitate to bring the full weight of the law to bear on anybody that intends to cause trouble or disrupt the exercise. This state is bigger that any individual and everybody must conduct himself or herself in manners that conform with the Electoral Law.”
He announced that “nobody should loiter around polling units and nobody should bring anything to the units for sale. No offensive item like knives, sticks, guns, machetes. Go to the units, cast your votes and go home to wait for results.”
The Police boss also announced the withdrawal of all security details attached to politicians and public officers, saying “no security aide should follow anybody, ministers or even the governor to the polling units. Anybody that violates the Electoral Law will be treated like a common felon.”
He added: “We have done our own in putting security strategy into place. It is now left for the politicians to conduct themselves properly so that we can have a free and fair exercise. The eyes of Nigerians and indeed the entire world are on Ondo State. Nigeria cannot afford to wear the tag of a nation that cannot organize credible election.”Meanwhile electoral materials have been dispatched to their respective destinations and the exercise was done in the full glare of representatives of political parties and their agents who accompanied the materials.On Thursday, materials meant for remote areas and areas with difficult terrains were dispatched from Akure to ensure that they get there in time for the election.The National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, had on Wednesday given assurance that for security reasons, “all the ballot papers to be used for the exercise are customised with different colours for each senatorial district while the document has special security features, including one “that is known only to me as the Chairman of INEC.”
The National Commissioner in charge of the South West zone, Professor Lai Olurode, who supervised the distribution of the materials under heavy security at the INEC office, expressed satisfaction over the process.It is obviously one election that will test the integrity of INEC, the security agents and the people of Ondo State considering the tension and hype that characterised the build-up to D-Day.Many see the election as a three-way race among the incumbent governor and Labour Party (LP) candidate, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko; the former national president of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) and candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) and the former National Legal Adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Mr. Olusola Oke.Throughout the electioneering campaign, the three candidates and their parties stole the show as they stormed the nooks and crannies in the state canvassing for votes from the electorate.According to Mimiko, he deserved a second term having performed well in his first term. Called Iroko (the strong, sturdy king of trees) by his numerous admirers, Mimiko is seen by many pundits as a governor who has done well enough to deserve a second term in office. His Abiye Mother and Child health delivery system, for instance, is considered by WHO as a primary health model for the whole of Africa.But Akeredolu alleges that Mimiko’s performance is not commensurate with what has accrued to the state in the last four years.
PDP candidate Oke on his own part believes he is ordained by God to take over power and take the people of the state to the Promised Land.
today
Ordinarily for the incumbent, Mimiko, it would have been an easy ride back to power considering what many consider to be his laudable performance in office so far.
But what appears like a major challenge to him now is his political platform, which the major opposition party, ACN and its supporters see as alien to the Southwest that is under the control of the party.This particular issue was used as a strong weapon of blackmail and campaign of calumny against Mimiko by the ACN, especially with the move for regional integration being championed by the party in the zone.Mimiko’s supporters have also countered that integration is not the same thing as uniformity, especially because the Ondo governor’s administration’s policies and acclaimed service delivery accord with the progressive politics of the Southwest.Mimiko’s defeat of the incumbent governor, Olusegun Agagu in 2007 against all odds was a testimony of his popularity in the state, which many believe has even heightened since he came to power through a popular mandate four years ago.Besides, he enjoys the power of incumbency and has strong support base at the grassroots, having been in power in the last four years. He has also been endorsed by a number of big wigs in Ondo State, including former Secretary to the Federal Government and APP Presidential candidate in 1999, Chief Olu Falae.ACN, being in control of power in all the states in the zone, except Ondo, would try to ensure that Mimiko is dislodged from office, if not for anything, at least to prove that it is the most popular party in the Southwest.
It is obvious that Akeredolu is really enjoying the support of the five governors of the ACN-controlled states in the zone, who have gone to the state to campaign for him with the national leadership of the party.So, financially Akeredolu’s campaign appears buoyant and poses a threat to Mimiko’s second term ambition. Mimiko supporters know this and do all they can to counter it. Moreover, it’s only Ondo people, who know their candidates, that will vote in the election. Will they vote for the angel they know or the ones they don’t? That question will be answered today.
Though the PDP candidate, Oke, is expected to pose a serious challenge in the election today, being from the party ruling the country, his ambition might suffer a setback due to the crisis that bedevilled his party since the removal of Dr. Olusegun Agagu as governor. The development has led to the expulsion of some bigwigs in the party, while others had defected to the opposition parties ahead of the election.
Though the national leadership of the party and Vice President Namadi Sambo were in the state to campaign for Oke, it appears that the crisis is festering, as major PDP stakeholders were yet to join Oke in his campaign.Apart from his appearance during the flag-off of Oke’s campaign in the state, Agagu has not been seen campaigning for Oke.Naturally, Oke is expected to enjoy the Presidency’s backing in the election, but how such backing would translate to victory in today’s election is still not clear.One thing that is unique in the race is that the three major contenders hail from the three senatorial zones that make up the state, with each enjoying strong support base in their respective zones, a development many believe might take the election to a run-off.
While Akeredolu and Oke are lawyers, Mimiko is a medical doctor and three of them are products of the University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University. So the race be rightly tagged “The Battle Of The Great Ifes.”
IT is “The Battle Of The Great Ifes” today as the trio of Olusegun Mimiko, Rotimi Akeredolu and Olusola Oke, all alumni of the Obafemi Awolowo University, slug it out in the grand finale of the titanic tussle for the soul of Ondo State.
No fewer than 11,000 policemen, drawn from eleven State Police Commands have been deployed to provide security during today’s election.
While Mimiko of the Labour Party (a.k.a Iroko Tree) has vowed to rout all opposition, Akeredolu of the Action Congress Of Nigeria (CAN), has boasted he would defeat the incumbent. Oke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on his part sees the two as mere also-rans.
The election, which may turn out to be the most policed electoral exercise in the country also has an unspecified number of personnel from the armed forces mainly the Nigerian Army, the Navy and the Air Force.While the soldiers will be deployed on land, naval ratings and marine policemen would take charge of the security of the two riverine local councils of Ilaje and Ese-Odo on the state’s coastal stretch as Air Force helicopters would be deployed for aerial surveillance and the movement of sensitive electoral materials to areas with difficult terrains.Apart from this, contingents of other para-military outfits like the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the Customs, Immigration and Prison Services as well as the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) with regular policemen will mount security at the 3,007 polling units.It was gathered yesterday that each of the units will have at least four security operatives attached to it as soldiers would mount road blocks and patrol the streets to enforce the restriction order while a large number of plain-clothes agents drawn from all the intelligence services will mingle with the crowd of voters to ensure compliance with the Electoral Act.
The Inspector-general of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, who has relocated to the state to coordinate security, had earlier disclosed that “Five units of mobile policemen will be deployed in each of the senatorial districts to ensure adherence to the restriction; 10 mobile units will be on standby in each of the local governments.“20 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) will also be deployed, while members of the counter terrorism unit will be on ground to provide security at the polling units and collation centres.”
Three Commissioners of Police have also been deployed to man each of the three senatorial districts of the state and they are to be supervised by not less than two Deputy Inspectors General of Police (DIGs) who have already arrived at the state capital.
The newly deployed Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Indabawa, who, for the purpose of the poll, was posted from his Rivers State Command to replace the Ondo Police boss, Danladi Mshebwala, yesterday charged the policemen to ensure a hitch-free exercise in their various units and areas of operation.He told journalists that the command was ready to maintain law and order and that policemen have been briefed to apprehend anybody, no matter how highly placed, who runs foul of the law during the exercise.Indabawa also warned troublemakers to stay away from Ondo State as “security forces will not hesitate to bring the full weight of the law to bear on anybody that intends to cause trouble or disrupt the exercise. This state is bigger that any individual and everybody must conduct himself or herself in manners that conform with the Electoral Law.”
He announced that “nobody should loiter around polling units and nobody should bring anything to the units for sale. No offensive item like knives, sticks, guns, machetes. Go to the units, cast your votes and go home to wait for results.”
The Police boss also announced the withdrawal of all security details attached to politicians and public officers, saying “no security aide should follow anybody, ministers or even the governor to the polling units. Anybody that violates the Electoral Law will be treated like a common felon.”
He added: “We have done our own in putting security strategy into place. It is now left for the politicians to conduct themselves properly so that we can have a free and fair exercise. The eyes of Nigerians and indeed the entire world are on Ondo State. Nigeria cannot afford to wear the tag of a nation that cannot organize credible election.”Meanwhile electoral materials have been dispatched to their respective destinations and the exercise was done in the full glare of representatives of political parties and their agents who accompanied the materials.On Thursday, materials meant for remote areas and areas with difficult terrains were dispatched from Akure to ensure that they get there in time for the election.The National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, had on Wednesday given assurance that for security reasons, “all the ballot papers to be used for the exercise are customised with different colours for each senatorial district while the document has special security features, including one “that is known only to me as the Chairman of INEC.”
The National Commissioner in charge of the South West zone, Professor Lai Olurode, who supervised the distribution of the materials under heavy security at the INEC office, expressed satisfaction over the process.It is obviously one election that will test the integrity of INEC, the security agents and the people of Ondo State considering the tension and hype that characterised the build-up to D-Day.Many see the election as a three-way race among the incumbent governor and Labour Party (LP) candidate, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko; the former national president of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) and candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) and the former National Legal Adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Mr. Olusola Oke.Throughout the electioneering campaign, the three candidates and their parties stole the show as they stormed the nooks and crannies in the state canvassing for votes from the electorate.According to Mimiko, he deserved a second term having performed well in his first term. Called Iroko (the strong, sturdy king of trees) by his numerous admirers, Mimiko is seen by many pundits as a governor who has done well enough to deserve a second term in office. His Abiye Mother and Child health delivery system, for instance, is considered by WHO as a primary health model for the whole of Africa.But Akeredolu alleges that Mimiko’s performance is not commensurate with what has accrued to the state in the last four years.
PDP candidate Oke on his own part believes he is ordained by God to take over power and take the people of the state to the Promised Land.
today
Ordinarily for the incumbent, Mimiko, it would have been an easy ride back to power considering what many consider to be his laudable performance in office so far.
But what appears like a major challenge to him now is his political platform, which the major opposition party, ACN and its supporters see as alien to the Southwest that is under the control of the party.This particular issue was used as a strong weapon of blackmail and campaign of calumny against Mimiko by the ACN, especially with the move for regional integration being championed by the party in the zone.Mimiko’s supporters have also countered that integration is not the same thing as uniformity, especially because the Ondo governor’s administration’s policies and acclaimed service delivery accord with the progressive politics of the Southwest.Mimiko’s defeat of the incumbent governor, Olusegun Agagu in 2007 against all odds was a testimony of his popularity in the state, which many believe has even heightened since he came to power through a popular mandate four years ago.Besides, he enjoys the power of incumbency and has strong support base at the grassroots, having been in power in the last four years. He has also been endorsed by a number of big wigs in Ondo State, including former Secretary to the Federal Government and APP Presidential candidate in 1999, Chief Olu Falae.ACN, being in control of power in all the states in the zone, except Ondo, would try to ensure that Mimiko is dislodged from office, if not for anything, at least to prove that it is the most popular party in the Southwest.
It is obvious that Akeredolu is really enjoying the support of the five governors of the ACN-controlled states in the zone, who have gone to the state to campaign for him with the national leadership of the party.So, financially Akeredolu’s campaign appears buoyant and poses a threat to Mimiko’s second term ambition. Mimiko supporters know this and do all they can to counter it. Moreover, it’s only Ondo people, who know their candidates, that will vote in the election. Will they vote for the angel they know or the ones they don’t? That question will be answered today.
Though the PDP candidate, Oke, is expected to pose a serious challenge in the election today, being from the party ruling the country, his ambition might suffer a setback due to the crisis that bedevilled his party since the removal of Dr. Olusegun Agagu as governor. The development has led to the expulsion of some bigwigs in the party, while others had defected to the opposition parties ahead of the election.
Though the national leadership of the party and Vice President Namadi Sambo were in the state to campaign for Oke, it appears that the crisis is festering, as major PDP stakeholders were yet to join Oke in his campaign.Apart from his appearance during the flag-off of Oke’s campaign in the state, Agagu has not been seen campaigning for Oke.Naturally, Oke is expected to enjoy the Presidency’s backing in the election, but how such backing would translate to victory in today’s election is still not clear.One thing that is unique in the race is that the three major contenders hail from the three senatorial zones that make up the state, with each enjoying strong support base in their respective zones, a development many believe might take the election to a run-off.
While Akeredolu and Oke are lawyers, Mimiko is a medical doctor and three of them are products of the University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University. So the race be rightly tagged “The Battle Of The Great Ifes.”
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