By Idowu Gabriel
A socio-political group, the Ado-Ekiti Frontiers, has called on the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti, to cede the Ekiti Central Senatorial ticket to Ado-Ekiti ahead of the 2023 National Assembly elections.
According to the group, allowing Ado-Ekiti to produce the APC’s senatorial candidate will boost its chances in the June 18, Governorship Election and the general elections scheduled for 2023.
Ado-Ekiti Frontiers made this appeal in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Mr Sikiru Salami, on Friday and made available to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti.
The group, in the statement, urged Gov. Kayode Fayemi, the Ekiti APC Chairman, Mr Paul Omotoso, and other party stakeholders to put in place a mechanism that would ensure the emergence of the party’s senatorial candidate from Ado-Ekiti Local Government Area (LGA).
“Ado-Ekiti is strategically placed to clinch the seat because it has the voting strength that will contribute the chunk of votes that will drive the party to victory in 2022 and subsequent elections,” the group said.
It called on the party leaders to consider the fact that statistics from the just concluded Permanent Voter Card registration, Ado-Ekiti could now boast of 155,000 registered voters, a fact that should not be ignored by any party desirous of electoral victory.
The group claimed Ado-Ekiti was the largest LGA in the state, and which had the population and capacity to turn around the electoral fortune of any party.
“Ado-Ekiti people are not asking for too much, if they are soliciting for a senatorial seat in the coming general elections.
“However, we shall continue to be peaceful and patient in our demand for our rightful positions as a community that hosts the entire Ekiti.
“The voting strength of Ado-Ekiti secured victory for APC in 2018, because we were able to bridge the gap of 2014 governorship election to the minimum level,” the frontiers said in the statement.
It said for instance, in the 2014 Governorship Election, APC polled 13,927, while PDP scored 41,169 with a wide margin of 27,242, but that in 2018, Ado-Ekiti reduced the wide gap to 4,699, which actually gave victory to APC.
The group boasted that Ado-Ekiti would perform better in subsequent elections with the developmental strides of Gov. Kayode Fayemi, coupled with mobilisation of politicians of the APC extraction and electorates.
“A cursory look at the recent addition of polling units by Independent National Electorial Commission (INEC), revealed that Ado-Ekiti now has 344 polling units, which is the highest in the state, and which will eventually translate to votes in coming elections.
“Ekiti West with 188 polling units goes home with the governorship ticket, Ikere with 125 polling units coasting home with deputy governorship ticket and Ikole, with 203 polling units already settled with speakership.
“Then, what is the stake of Ado-Ekiti with 344 polling units? Let us reason together without sentiments. Ado-Ekiti will still contribute the larger percentage of the votes that will take us to victory.” (NAN)
