Election postponement won’t stop APC’s victory – Egbeyemi

Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Chief Bisi Egbeyemi, on Sunday expressed confidence that the postponement of the general elections by one week will not stop the All Progressives Congress (APC) from winning the polls.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that, Egbeyemi made the remark during a meeting with APC members at his residence in Ado-Ekiti on the heels of the postponement of the general elections.

He urged party members not to be discouraged by the shift, saying that victory is sure for President Muhammadu Buhari and other APC candidates in the general elections.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the early hours of Saturday shifted the Presidential and National Assembly election to February 23 and the Governorship and State House of Assembly election to March 9 citing logistic challenges.

The deputy governor gave assurance to the APC members that the Party was poised for victory on the new dates announced by the electoral umpire noting that the poll shift would only delay celebration of victory by its members.

Egbeyemi explained that the APC, as a law-abiding party, had campaigned vigorously across the length and breadth of Ekiti and Nigeria and was confident of achieving victory at the polls before the shift was announced.

While noting that although the postponement of the elections was painful, Egbeyemi described it as a price to pay for a long-awaited victory by the APC, which he described as a party to beat at the polls.

The deputy governor said party members in Ekiti State has sold the candidacy of President Buhari and other APC candidates to the electorate whom he said are waiting to speak with their votes.

Describing the poll shift as ‘blessing in disguise,’ the Ekiti deputy governor recalled that similar postponement in the 2011 and 2015 general elections resulted in overwhelming victory for the party.

“I want to appeal to our teeming party members not to be discouraged by the sudden postponement of the elections by INEC.

“APC members should see the postponement as an opportunity to plan better, re-strategize and work harder to ensure victory for our party on the new dates of February 23 and March 9 announced by INEC,” he said.

Egbeyemi expressed optimism that APC would coast home to victory and the postponement would not stop APC’s victory, but only delay it by a week.