Former Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has said some military officers are ready to testify regarding the audio clip that “caught” senior Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members and military chiefs plotting how to rig the June 21, last year, governorship election.
Speaking on a live programme, “APC Change Hour”, on ADABA 88.9 FM, Fayemi said the postponement of the 2015 general elections was not about security but about a plot to rig the polls.
The audio clip was aired on the radio station with the alleged voices of Governor Ayo Fayose, former Minister of State (Defence) Musiliu Obanikoro, Police Affairs Minister Jelili Adesiyan, Osun State PDP governorship candidate Iyiola Omisore and Gen. Aliyu Momoh discussing how to rig the election.
He said the postponement was about a “desperate government and a desperate President who is afraid of losing and using a military that became a willing tool”.
The former governor said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led administration was trying to re-enact the rigging perpetrated in Ekiti with the alleged misuse of the military.
Fayemi said the upper echelon of the military was guilty of treason with its role in the dramatic postponement of the polls.
“The first duty of the government through the Armed Forces is security of life and property,” Fayemi said, apparently referring to the service chiefs’memo in which they said they could not guarantee security in four states.
He deplored a situation in which the military had been desecrated where army generals were being harassed and intimidated by politicians desperate to rig elections for their party.
The former governor said the All Progressives Congress (APC) would resist an alleged plot by the PDP to use soldiers in the general elections on the strength of a Federal High Court, Sokoto, judgment which ruled against the use of soldiers for electoral duties.
“We, in the APC, will not allow the use of the military to oversee the conduct of the elections because we know and we are aware that they have sewn fake police uniforms, they have sewn fake army uniforms but we will not allow them,” Fayemi said.
The former governor, who reiterated that the second part of the rigging audio file would be released, said other steps were being taken on the matter, which may become a subject of litigation.
“We are taking appropriate constitutional steps on the matter. In fact, there are soldiers who are ready to testify in court.
“There are many Captain Sagir Kolis who are willing to give evidence in court. I am just appealing to all Nigerians to be patient as events unfold.”
Fayemi said it was unfortunate that Ekiti was used as a sacrificial lamb for the new rigging technique, noting that it failed in Osun because the plot was exposed with an alleged plot to deploy Gen. Momoh to Osun to re-enact the Ekiti feat.
On the actors in the rigging drama, Fayemi said all the voices could be recognised as they were very clear and distinct.
Reminiscing on the outcome of the poll, which he described as “mysterious”, the former governor said a party (APC) with three senators, six members of the House of Representatives, 25 House of Assembly members, council chairmen and councillors could not have lost so scandalously.
Answering questions on why he conceded a day after the poll, Fayemi said there was a “grand plan” from Abuja to kill many people after the election should there be any demonstration or protest against the result.
According to the ex-governor, some soldiers posted to the state for election duty drove vehicles that conveyed PDP chieftains and members to arrest many APC chieftains and members who were released after the election.
“Yes, I carefully couched my statement and I said if this is the will of the people of Ekiti, then I accept but in the second paragraph I said the peace of Ekiti was paramount to me and I said I am choosing peace first, then justice later,”he said.
Speaking on the political activities of his successor (Fayose), Fayemi said: “Fayose is fighting for his life; he is more desperate than President Goodluck Jonathan and he believes that all his atrocities will come to haunt him. The judges who were beaten, the legislature that was sacked, the civil servants who were harassed are coming to haunt him.
“They are using the military to rig elections and Nigerians must be vigilant. It is when the situation cannot be handled by the police that you call in the military.
“If you hear what Captain Koli said, he said they were given instructions (to rig Ekiti poll). Chris Uba, who is not a military officer, giving orders to military officers. Isn’t that absurd?
“Soldiers drove the vehicles that conveyed PDP members to arrest APC members. Our members were arrested and they were not released until the election was over.”
Speaking on the alleged plot to remove the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, the former governor urged Nigerians to hold President Jonathan to his words as spoken during Wednesday’s presidential media chat that the electoral chief would not be removed.
He said Jega holds the ace on the “three-month terminal leave”, arguing that if he (Jega) insists on not leaving office, until the expiration of his term, “there is noting the Executive can do”.
Fayemi urged Nigerians to use their votes to flush out what he called “an incompetent government”, saying Nigerians need to be vigilant to ensure that their electoral wishes are not tampered with.
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