IDOWU ADELUSI chronicles on the National and State Assemblies elections holding in Ekiti State on Tuesday with focus on Ayo Fayose, a leading senatorial candidate.

EKITI State has been focus of attention of many within and outside the country because of the social and political activities in the state in the last seven years.

On Tuesday, the attention of many Nigerians will again be shifted to the state in respect of the National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had shifted the National Assembly poll in the state twice. There will be not be gubernatorial election in the state until 2014 when the tenure of Governor Kayode Fayemi is expected to lapse.

Undisputably, more attention will be focused, on Tuesday, on Ekiti Central Senatorial District where former governor of the state, Mr. Ayodele Fayose of the Labour Party (LP), Mr. Babafemi Ojudu of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and Mr. Kayode Alufa of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will slug it out to make it to the Senate.

What makes the district a fierce contest is the involvement of Fayose, whose popularity among the people of the state is said to be a threat to ACN. Investigations  showed that the people are ready to elect him to the Senate as a payback for the development which, they believe, his administration brought to the state  when he was governor.

The people are yet to forget that Fayose’s administration changed the face of Ekiti State and particularly Ado-Ekiti, the state capital  through dualisation of township roads and all roads entering Ado-Ekiti from Ilawe, Iyin, Ikere and Ifaki.

His administration constructed the new Governor’s Office, the Presidential Lodge and the chalets, Archbishop Biodun Adetiloye Hall, Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, the Trade Fair Complex, Fountain Motel, Lady Jibowu Hall and office of the Accountant General, among others.

Of interest to the indigenes of Ado-Ekiti are the township roads linking one area to the other constructed by  the Fayose administration which removed sufferings of many years experienced by the people.

In the area of education, in 2003, Ekiti State  came 35th  in the federation in NECO and WAEC exams.  In 2004 (a year after Fayose’s administration came on board), Ekiti moved to 17th position in WAEC and 13th in NECO examinations.  In 2005, Ekiti moved up higher to 8th position in WAEC and 7th  in NECO.  These were based on the analysis of WAEC and NECO results on five credits and above (including Maths and English) for the year 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.

Fayose was able to reposition education in the state through prompt payment of  teachers’ salaries and allowances, promotion, provision of infrastructure in schools and other incentives to teachers. The civil servants, local government workers, artisans, traders, pensioners, drivers, commercial motorcycle operators and widows were not left out by the administration.

Following the aborted April 2 National Assembly election and the perceived support for Fayose by the people, the ACN has reportedly mounted a campaign of calumny against him on pages of newspapers.

Fayose’s popularity has continued to soar.  Ekiti people, according to investigations, have  refused to be hoodwinked by the alleged lies of Ekiti ACN.

Pastor Kola Oluwawole, state  secretary of Labour Party and Mr Tayo Bello, former local government education secretary and chieftain of PDP  had asked, “where were they when Fayose was transforming the state?  Notwithstanding whatever anybody says about Fayose, he is our leader.

He has never foresaken us and we will not let him down.”

Mr Yinka Adeloye, coordinator of Ekiti Movement for Justice, said: “They called themselves activists, fooling people about, forgetting that they cannot again fool us in Ekiti.”

The strength of Fayose as a politician lies in his love for the grassroots people and this is expected to translate into victory for him in Tuesday’s election.

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