Osun rerun: TMG tasks contestants on spirit of sportsmanship
Sportsmanship
By Taiye Agbaje
Abuja, Sept 27, 2018 (NAN) Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), a coalition of civil right organisations, has called on all the contestants in the Thursday’s governorship rerun election in Osun State to have the spirit of sportsmanship.
Chairperson of TMG, Dr Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, who was on ground to monitor the poll with other observers, said political parties in the contest should realise that in every competition, there would always be a winner and loser.
She spoke on Thursday in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
”My advice for all the stakeholders in this election is to embrace peace and shun violence.
”And for the contestants, I will advise them to have the spirit of sportsmanship. You know in all processes of competition, one wins and another loses.
”So they should make peaceful coexistence of the state their priority,” she said.
Akiyode-Afolabi noted that though communities where the rerun elections were taking place were filled with tension and fear, she appealed to all and sundry to embrace peace.
”The whole place is tensed up; apparently people are very afraid.
”There is fear in the communities where the election is going on because of the tension and fear that anything can happen.
”We appeal to people to embrace peace,” she said.
She, however, condemned the harassment of election observers by security agents in some parts of the areas where the poll was taking place.
”In Kajola area, those who went there early were prevented from getting access to the voting area by the hoodlums. We also got report that vehicles were damaged.
“Presently, the voting is going on. In Orolu, Gbongan and Idi-Iya, voting is going on without any hitches. Voting started at Idi-Iya at 8a.m, I was there in person.
”In Gbongan, voting started around 8:30a.m and there is orderliness. We also have enough security presence,” she said.
Akiyode-Afolabi, who observed that all the electoral materials brought by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), including the card readers were functioning well, urged the people in the state to refrain from violence.
NAN reports that INEC had declared the governorship election in Osun inconclusive following the thin margin of votes scored by the two main contenders.
Rerun elections slated for today, Thursday, in Osun are to hold in seven polling units across four local government areas.
The Returning Officer and Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Prof. Joseph Fuwape, said Sen. Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) scored 254,698 votes, while Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC) scored 254, 345 votes
He said Sen. Iyiola Omisore of Social Democratic Party (SDP) followed with 128,049.
Prof Fuwape said “Based on the results collated by the Returning Officer, the margin between the two leading candidates is 353 which is lower than the number of registered voters in the affected areas.
Extant law and INEC Guidelines and Regulations provide that where such a situation occurs, a declaration may not be made. NAN
TOA/AFA
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Edited by Felix Ajide