Ondo Labour Party Says Mimiko Won Poll By 73% Of Votes

SAN FRANCISCO, November 07, (THEWILL) - The Ondo State chapter of the Labour Party (LP) has submitted that its flag bearer in the October 20, 2012 gubernatorial election, Dr Olusegun Mimiko won the election with 73 percent of total votes cast adding that the electoral victory was an emphatic demonstration of the confidence of the people in its candidate's numerous developmental projects which had transformed the State into a cynosure of all eyes in the last three and a half years.

The party however berated those trying to undermine Dr Mimiko’s victory, describing them as bad losers who are out to employ lies and propaganda, which failed them before and during the election to rubbish a victory already hailed as superlative.

Governor Mimiko contested and won the October 20 Governorship Election on the platform of the LP with a total vote of 260,199 while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) polled 155,961 and the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) scored a total of 143,512 votes. A total number of 624,659 voters cast their votes in the election.

Specifically, the LP, while expressing dismay at the series of insinuations being made by opposition parties in the State to explain away their dismal performance at the poll which had been hailed from far and wide as one of the best in the annals of election in Nigeria regretted that some people now take turn to lampoon the election because they lost woefully.

According to a statement issued by LP’s Publicity Secretary, Mr. Femi Okunjemiruwa, the LP regretted that it was sad that people could now be making wild allegations all in a bid to explain away their loss at the election and undermine the renewal of Dr. Mimiko’s mandate by the people based on his sterling performance as Governor in the last three and a half years.

“It is worrisome that in the last few days, the opposition had resorted into the fabrication of a false impression to undermine the victory of Dr Mimiko by publishing in the media that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) accredited 29,000 voters in Akure South Local Government while Labour Party polled 49,000!

“But the truth of the matter is that in Akure South, out of 252,731 Registered Voters 86,343 were accredited to vote while LP scored 49,915 votes to ACN’s 11,955 and PDP’s 12, 467 votes out of the total votes cast of 82,711! But because it does not favour them, they have resorted to media stunts to discredit an election that had been adjudged one of the best in Nigeria. Indeed, it is apposite to note that in the entire six local government councils in the Central Senatorial District namely Akure South, Akure North, Ifedore, Ondo East, Ondo West and Idanre, neither the ACN and PDP could score the mandatory 25% of the votes cast!

“Statistically, Dr Olusegun Mimiko got 73 per cent of the total votes cast in the election scoring 25% and above in 17 out of the 18 Local Governments Councils in the State. He also came first in 13 out of the 18 Councils as against 7 Local Government Councils won by the ACN and PDP’s 8 Local Government Councils. Thus, from the forgoing while both ACN and PDP got 25% and above in 15 Local Government Councils, Dr Olusegun Mimiko of LP got 25% and above in 17 Local Government Councils. This is the reason why they are all out to create a wrong perception for those who are unaware of the true position of things in the State by using a section of the media loyal to their clandestine cause which will fail,” Okunjemiruwa explained.

The LP Publicity Secretary while positing that comparatively, the election of Ondo State had the highest turn out of voters in recent elections in the country, noted that it had equally been adjudged as free and fair by foreign and local observers, the United States of America, the Presidency, and other interest groups including the security and the media who monitored the election.

The Party therefore called for caution on the series of snide remarks being made by aggrieved parties in the election even as he registered the implication of casting aspersions on people without proof to substantiate them.