How Buhari won Ondo governorship election for Akeredolu – Minister

The Minister of State for Niger Delta, Prof. Claudius Daramola, says the counsel of President Muhammadu Buhari during the governorship campaign rally in Akure, Ondo State on November 19 was responsible for the victory of the All Progressives Congress, APC, at the polls.

Recall that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had on Sunday declared Rotimi Akeredolu of the APC winner  of the Saturday’s governorship election in the state after polling 244,842 votes to beat his closest rival, Eyitayo Jegede of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, who garnered 150, 380 votes, while Mr Olusola Oke of the Alliance for Democracy, AD, followed with 126, 889 votes.

Addressing State House Correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Wednesday, the Minister stated that Buhari’s visit to Akure turned around the fortunes of the party.

Daramola said, “The presence of our President on Nov. 19, in Akure, the Ondo State capital actually won the election for us because he spoke to the people and the people accepted him and they voted for us massively.

“And today we are happy for it, and I am saying here in the presence of the governor-elect that we will not fail the people of the state.

“We have given our promises to them and we will add to this, we will not leave any one of them out.

“Ondo state had been in opposition for almost four decades and today we are happy that today our people are out of political and economic bondage.

“We have now joined the mainstream.’’