Segun Oni, the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), and Kemi Elebute-Halle, the Action Democratic Party’s candidate, have rejected the results of the Ekiti governorship election.

They vowed to challenge the outcome at the tribunal.

Mr Oni, through Owoseni Ajayi, his state collation agent, alleged that the results, as declared by INEC, did not reflect the actual decision of the people.

“We are rejecting the results because the election was characterised by violence and intimidation of voters.

“As a result, we will definitely challenge outcomes of these results in the court of law for posterity and generations coming to know that when conducting elections, you must follow the rules and procedures.”

All efforts to speak with Mr Oni proved abortive as he was not allowed to see or speak with anyone.

Similarly, Mrs Elebute-Halle said that the victory of Biodun Oyebanji in the just concluded election was “tainted with vote-buying and corruption.”

In a statement by ADP chairman in Ado-Ekiti, Mrs Elebute-Halle condemned the snatching of ballot boxes, vote-buying and harassment of her party members.

According to her, political thugs and members of a party in Ado-Ekiti, Oye-Ekiti, Ikole-Ekiti and Ilasa-Ekiti, among other areas, attacked supporters of her party.

“The victory of Mr Biodun Oyebanji in the just concluded governorship election ordinarily would have been accepted by me if the election had not been fraught by electoral malpractices.

“In spite of various sensitisation programmes and media publicity against vote-buying, the APC, PDP, and SDP actually promoted and encouraged corruption, both at the grassroots and the state levels.

“It was not credible, neither was it free nor fair. His APC thugs destabilised my strongholds across the state, attacked our members, and snatched and destroyed our ballot boxes.

“All those votes, including those obtained by PDP, will be cancelled at the tribunal,” she said.

(NAN)