Residents celebrated Governor Ademola’s victory and expressed satisfaction over the peaceful conduct of Saturday’s election.
There was jubilation in Osogbo, the Osun State State capital, following the declaration of Governor Ademola Adeleke as the winner of Saturday’s governorship election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that immediately after the final results were announced, supporters and residents of the town trooped out in large numbers to celebrate the victory.
Supporters of the governor, who had gathered at the INEC office as early as 5.00 a.m., danced at the commission’s main entrance shortly after the declaration.
Many of the supporters and residents were seen riding motorcycles and driving around the town, singing victory songs and celebrating the outcome of the election.
NAN reports that Ile-Ife residents celebrated the governor’s victory and expressed satisfaction over the peaceful conduct of Saturday’s election.
Speaking with NAN, Osun State Commissioner for Transportation, Olusesan Oyedele, thanked God for the peaceful conduct of the election, without killings or destruction of property across state.
Mr Oyedele described the election as free, fair and credible, commending INEC officials for conducting the exercise without bias and ensuring a transparent electoral process across Osun State.
He also commended the electorate for their orderliness and urged them to remain law-abiding, saying peaceful participation was essential to sustaining democracy and development across the state.
Also, Busayo Arayela, an Accord Party leader, acknowledged God’s grace for allowing peace to prevail in Osun State before and during the election, expressing hope it continued.
Mrs Arayela said party members and leaders were enthusiastic about the peaceful manner the electorate conducted themselves throughout the electoral exercise, describing the development as encouraging for democracy.
She said the efforts of traditional rulers, particularly Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, in advocating for peace and urging residents to “give peace a chance” could not be overemphasised.
The party leader appreciated God for preventing evil occurrences in Ife North, Ife East, Ife South and Ife Central, as well as other parts of Osun during election.
Mrs Arayela appealed to residents and stakeholders to maintain peace across the state after declaration of the result, urging everyone to accept the outcome responsibly and peacefully thereafter.
She also admonished Mr Adeleke to sustain his developmental programmes across Osun, urging him not to disappoint residents but ensure delivery of democratic dividends to communities across state.
The streets of Ede North and Ede South local government areas of Osun State erupted into jubilation on Sunday following the results announced by INEC.
The residents, who spoke in interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said the electoral process was generally orderly and transparent in spite of some political violence recorded.
Ede, where the governor hails from, and its environs witnessed people dancing and jubilating after the electoral umpire disclared Governor Ademola Adeleke as winner of Saturday’s governorship election.
NAN reports that INEC, in the early hours of Sunday, declared Adeleke the winner after polling 511,067 votes to defeat his closest rival, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who scored 444,815 votes.
The INEC Returning Officer, Joshua Ogunwole, a professor who declared the results at the INEC collation centre, said the candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Najeem Salaam, came a distant third with 17,180 votes.
Ogunwole, Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, said the total valid votes cast were 985,079, while 20,721 votes were rejected, bringing the total number of votes cast to 1,005,800.
NAN reports that Adeleke won in 19 local government areas, while Oyebamiji recorded victory in 11 LGAs.
The local government results as declared by INEC are as follows:
1. Boluwaduro LGA
Returning Officer: Prof. Sola Omotola
A: 7,118
APC: 7,050
ADC: 179
Accredited voters: 14,662
Total valid votes: 14,478
Total votes cast: 14,655
2. Ede South LGA
Returning Officer: Raji Oluwakemi
A: 26,188
ADC: 390
APC: 6,219
Accredited voters: 34,011
Total votes cast: 33,950
Total valid votes: 33,210
3. Ife North LGA
Returning Officer: Prof. Tajudeen Opoola
A: 13,879
ADC: 333
APC: 9,613
Accredited voters: 24,772
Total votes cast: 24,704
Total valid votes: 24,216
4. Ilesa West LGA
Returning Officer: Prof. Babatunde Omotoso
A: 16,196
ADC: 673
APC: 12,756
Accredited voters: 31,333
Total votes cast: 31,234
Total valid votes: 30,244
5. Ifedayo LGA
Returning Officer: Prof. Babatope
A: 7,427
APC: 6,836
ADC: 115
Accredited voters: 14,703
Total votes cast: 14,703
Total valid votes: 14,449
6. Ilesa East LGA
Returning Officer: Prof. Chika Asogba
A: 12,280
ADC: 504
APC: 16,208
Accredited voters: 30,371
Total votes cast: 30,209
Total valid votes: 29,460
7. Ife Central LGA
Returning Officer: Prof. Adekoya Iromini
A: 21,171
ADC: 747
APC: 15,913
Accredited voters: 39,990
Total votes cast: 39,330
Total valid votes: 38,380
