Share this @internewscast.com
Two serving Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) federal lawmakers from Ondo State, Senator Nicholas Tofowomo, and Senator Ayo Akinyelure, have lost the chance to secure return tickets to the red chamber of the National Assembly.
Both senators failed to secure their tickets on Tuesday, during the party’s primary election.
During the intra-party election, Akinyelure, who is the incumbent senator representing Ondo Central Senatorial District of the state, garnered 82 votes and was beaten by Chief Ifedayo Adedipe, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, who scored 58 votes.
Meanwhile, the third contestant and former Chairman of the PDP in the state, Mr Clement Faboyede, polled 57 votes.
Akinyelure, who was first elected in 2011, is a two-term Senator.
According to Mr Bekekhimi Idiarhi, the Chairman of the election committee, who announced the results amid tight security, 201 delegates from the six Local Government Areas which include Akure South, Akure North, Ifedore, Idanre, Ondo East, and Ondo West, were accredited for the Ondo Central Senatorial District poll, out of which 199 voted.
Reacting to his victory, Chief Adedipe described his victory as the candidate of the party for Ondo Central Senatorial District, as “a will of God.”
He described the election as free and fair, noting that his victory was for every member of the party.
“It is the PDP that has won the exercise, not Adedipe. and I congratulate my fellow contestants too. They should see this exercise as a victory for all of us. The task ahead is monumental. We would require everyone to be on board and I want to urge our people to support us,” he said.
Similarly, Senator Tofowomo, representing Ondo South Senatorial District of the state, was also defeated by his closest rival, Mr Agboola Ajayi, a former deputy governor of the state.
Ajayi scored 78 votes to beat Tofowomo who polled 74 votes.
Meanwhile, Senator Akinyelure has blamed former governor Olusegun Mimiko, for his loss in the just concluded primary election.
Senator Tofowomo alleged that the former governor unduly influenced the delegates to vote against him at the exercise.
