Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers have expressed apprehension about alleged unwarranted attack on the sitting Governor of the state, Ayodele Fayose , just as it appealed to the Police to refrain from further harassment, intimidation and brutality of innocent citizens of the state till the end of election and beyond.
The traditional rulers who stated this in a communiqué issued at the end of their emergency meeting held in Ado Ekiti today implored the people of Ekiti State to be calm and go about their normal duties without fear of molestation.
They said if such a thing could happen to the governor, they wondered what will happen to the ordinary citizens of the state in the course of the election.
In the communiqué signed by the Chairman of the Council, Oba Oluwole Ademolaju, they noted that prior to the Wednesday incident; they had held several meetings with the stakeholders in the election. “Council met with the participating party leaders and the gubernatorial candidates with the Police, other law enforcement agencies, the INEC, the civil societies and the diplomatic community.
“During these meetings, the Traditional Rulers had preached peace implored all concerned to be neutral and unbiased. Most especially, we had requested the law enforcement agencies to refrain from intimidation, harassment and brutality of the people.
“We are therefore worried and disturbed that after all our appeal and entreaties, the police still went ahead to unleash mayhem on the Governor and innocent citizens right in front of the Government House.
“What happened yesterday showed that Ekiti State is under siege. We are not in a state of war and we don’t want Ekiti state to be turned into war zone. Election is a civil exercise and it should be so”.
The monarchs therefore appeal to INEC to remain an unbiased umpire and to be fair to all and also provide a level playing field to all parties involved in the election, as they appeal to all participants to accept the outcome of a free, fair and transparent election.
In a related development, the Ekiti Council of Elders have asked security agencies to remain very professional and unbiased in their duties to ensure a free, fair and credible poll on Saturday.
The elders, who stated this on Thursday in Ado Ekiti, said that the security should avoid unnecessary use of force as any weapon used to inflict harm on the people is used on an Ekiti person.
In a statement signed by the Chairman, Prof. Joseph Oluwasanmi and Secretary ,elder Niyi Ajibulu respectively, and made available to newsmen in Ado Ekiti, appreciated the efforts of the Federal Government in providing security for the peaceful conduct of gubernatorial election, but added that” the massive deployment of security was causing fear, tension and great anxiety among our people who should ordinarily freely exercise their franchise without intimidation.
“We consider the unfortunate incident in the Government House premises on Wednesday as most embarrassing because the state governor and the Government House are the symbol of authority for the state that should be accorded the respect they duly deserve.”