Former Deputy Governor of Ondo State, Agboola Ajayi has been declared the winner of Peoples Democratic Party’s governorship ticket.
He emerged winner with 264 votes out of the 621 accredited voters at the primary which held at International Culture and Event Centre (The Dome) Alagbaka, Akure on Thursday.
The Chairman of the PDP 2024 Governorship Primary Committee Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo who conducted the primary with the 7-man committee explained that two votes were voided.
The venue of the event was thrown into hysterical laughter when the chairman of the 7-man governorship primary committee disclosed that one of the delegates thumb printed columns of all the aspirants.
Another delegate left the ballot paper blank voting for none of the aspirants.
Declaring Agboola Ajayi as the winner of the primary election, Ewhrudjakpo said: “Seven aspirants participated in the exercise, nobody stood down for each other and by the virtues of the results, Agboola Ajayi having scored the highest numbers of votes cast in the indirect primary election, is hereby declared the winner of this primary and hereby declared the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the November 16, 2024 governorship election in Ondo state and he is hereby return as the candidate.”
In his acceptance speech, Agboola Ajayi said: “Let me give glory to Almighty God for a day like this. The victory goes to all PDP members, and it is a victory for democracy.”
“I want to first commend my brother, our leader, the chairman of the committee, for a transparent and very credible process. I’m sure everybody in Ondo State is happy with the result. You can’t compare it with the direct or fraudulent primary.”
“Let me also commend the national leadership of our party for putting in place a transparent process. That is the difference between the PDP and other political parties in Nigeria.”
“To all our party members: no victor, no vanquish. We are all winners, and it is a victory for democracy.”
Agboola Ajayi would contest in the November 16, 2024 gubernatorial election in Ondo State as the standard bearer of PDP.
Ajayi was the deputy of the late Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu in his first term but fell out with Akeredolu before the end of the tenure.
He therefore defected to PDP but was denied of the party’s ticket by Eyitayo Jegede who won the governorship ticket.
Agboola Ajayi subsequently defected to Zenith Labour Party(ZLP) where he was offered the governorship ticket of the party.
He however lost the governorship election before he later returned to PDP.
Meanwhile, Kolade Akinjo, a former member of the House of Representatives, came second with 157 votes.
Other aspirants scores are as follows: Akingboye Bamikole 24, Akinwumi Harrison 64, Arebuwa Tubosun 02, Ebiseni Olusola 99, John Ola-Mafo 09.
•INDEPENDENTNG.