Ekiti urges extension of voters registration

• Those I assisted betrayed me, says Fayemi

EKITI State Government has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to extend the duration of the one-week continuous voters registration exercise for the governorship election, which is expected to end today.

The State Head of Service, Dr. Olugbenga Faseluka, made the appeal at the weekend while monitoring the exercise.

Describing people’s turnout as impressive, Faseluka noted that the time frame for the exercise would be grossly inadequate to accommodate all eligible voters.

According to him, it took an average of seven minutes to register one voter, which led to a huge number of people queuing at the close of the exercise each day, adding that it would have been more conducive if the exercise had been extended till 5:00pm daily.

Faseluka said that the government would follow up on the complaints and requests of stakeholders, particularly on the creation of additional polling units in some areas in the state.

Meanwhile, a former Governor of the state and governorship aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Kayode Fayemi, yesterday expressed regret that many of those he assisted when he was governor, later betrayed him after losing re-election bid on June 21, 2014.

The former governor said that some of them allegedly sponsored campaigns of calumny against his person even though they had occupied juicy positions in his government, saying that he has forgiven all of them. Fayemi said this in Ode Ekiti, headquarters of Gbonyin local council, when an APC chieftain, Mr. Makinde Araoye, empowered some elders across Ekiti South senatorial district.

Fayemi, while addressing party members said; “After losing, many of them started spreading rumour against me that I didn’t allow them to operate freely in my government.

“There was no one that that I teleguided. I allowed them to be free and enjoyed their positions contrary to what they said.’’