A former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has said President Bola Tinubu was “magnanimous” during the August 15 Osun State governorship election, arguing that the Federal Government could have influenced the outcome if it wanted to.

Fayose also alleged that the Federal Government used its influence to take Ekiti State from him during the 2018 governorship election.

The former governor stated this on Tuesday while speaking on TVC News, in response to comments by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, that he could have helped Tinubu win the Osun election for the All Progressives Congress if the President wanted victory “at all costs”.

The incumbent Osun governor and Accord candidate, Ademola Adeleke, won the election with 511,067 votes, defeating APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji, who polled 444,815 votes. African Democratic Congress candidate Najeem Salaam came third with 17,180 votes.

Adeleke won in 19 local government areas, while Oyebamiji won the remaining 11.

Speaking on the election, Fayose said its closeness meant the outcome could have gone either way, while commending Adeleke and urging him to be “magnanimous in victory”.

He said, “The only thing I heard towards the election was the federal government will take it by force. The federal government has come to do this. I want to say to you, if the federal government wants to take an election, they will take it.

“If the federal government, the ones I know of the past, if they want to take an election, there’s nothing you can do.”

Fayose said the circumstances surrounding the Osun election were different from those he experienced during the 2018 Ekiti governorship election.

“Let me give you an instance. Ekiti was taken from me in 2018. By all means possible. Those features did not play out in Ede.

“Three days before my election, the government house was jammed. It was jammed. You can’t talk to anyone on the phone.

“All my security details from whatever name you call it, I was left with an order. All of them were taken to police headquarters in Ado Ekiti and I was left on the field for three days. That is when you are talking a federal mind.”

Fayose further alleged that security personnel prevented him from leaving the Government House three days before the election and that he was assaulted when he attempted to come out.

“Beyond that, three days to the election, I wanted to do a match with over 60,000 followers. I was stopped. I was stopped by the security personnel.

“And I told them I am the governor of this state. An inspector told me, governor my foot. And they prevented me from coming out of the government house.

“And I said I was going to come out at all costs. And to that day, they hit me with the butt of the gun and I went down. My deputy at the time had the same experience.

“That was why I had the collar on my neck at the time. I wish I had that image for Nigerians to see. I had four surgeries, four procedures because of that incident alone.”

Fayose, however, praised Tinubu for what he described as a different approach to elections, saying the President had shown that it was possible to have an election in which Nigerians’ votes would count.

“If not for Tinubu, who has been very magnanimous in his actions, what would be the way to talk to him on social media? Have you seen him going after anybody to arrest them? Let me tell you, we have to thank God for this kind of president.

“He is showing us that it is possible to have an election of our dream in this country.”

He added that Tinubu’s appointments of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, the Inspector-General of Police and the Chief of Army Staff did not mean the President would use the institutions to manipulate elections.

“Tinubu today has appointed the INEC chairman. Tinubu today has appointed the Inspector General of Police. Tinubu today has appointed the Army Chief.

“People tell me that that combination will not take an election if they want to take it. It is the body language of a president they look at. And his body language is telling everyone that let this democracy survive.”

Fayose also rejected suggestions that his support for Tinubu and his recent appointment as chairman of the Rural Electrification Agency board meant he was preparing to defect to the APC.

He said his support for the administration was not personal but aimed at contributing to the country’s development.

“I have always supported the President while I was in office, about 15 years ago. And with all respect to the President, I was in the office of the Governor when he was in the office of the Governor in 2003. We’ve always related. Yes, we’re in different parties,” he said.

“It’s a call to serve for those who truly want to serve. It’s a call to serve. So for me, I am going to give my best.

“I will do everything possible to ensure that I make a mark.”