A former Minister of Education and chieftain of the Social Democratic Party, Prof Tunde Adeniran, said the SDP lost in the just concluded governorship election in Ekiti State because the party did not buy votes like some other parties.
Adeniran averred that the SDP candidate, Mr Akin Ayegbusi, would have won the election if the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party didn’t resort to vote buying. He added that the SDP didn’t believe in vote buying and didn’t have such money to spend.
In a telephone interview with our correspondent on Sunday, Adeniran said, “If there was no ‘see and buy’, SDP would have won the election, because people were anxious to have an alternative to the two parties (APC and PDP). Ekiti people preferred the SDP.
“The people loved our manifesto and philosophy because they could connect with us, especially with the Abiola experience. We are the only party that is ideological in terms of philosophy, orientation and the policies we intend to pursue.
“We lost because we didn’t have the money to purchase votes like other parties, and the people have been pauperised, so they scavenge for what anyone brings. But we don’t believe in such. We believe in people voting according to their conscience.”
Source: Punch
