Ahead of the 2023 general elections, Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure that votes of Nigerians count in the forthcoming polls.
The governor who stated this while receiving a letter notifying him of his election as the Silverbird Communication’s Man of the Year Award, called on to borrow a leaf from the books of the organisation, “by also ensuring that they count the votes of Nigerians and that their votes count in the coming general elections.
The governor said, “I want to use this opportunity to wish you, the management and Staff of Silverbird, a happy and rewarding New Year.
“We have not heard the last of Silverbird. I came from a business world and I know how it feels if a business entity survived the first five years. You are 25 years-old and going to be 26 now. So, it is an indication that you did something right and you will be around for many more years to come. If you cross a quarter of a century, you are likely to get to half of the century and then to hit a century, which means the entity will outlive the people that started it.
“Silverbird has made an impact in the communication, journalism and electronic space. So, we know that you are not cheap and an award from Silverbird is a huge one. I did not have any difficulty in verbally accepting the award, because it is not a junk type of award.
“So, I want to thank the management of Silverbird and even the people of Nigeria, those people who participated in voting.
“This is an election season for us and we want to use this opportunity to also tell the electoral umpire, INEC, to allow people’s votes to count. And when people vote, the votes should be counted and let it also count towards the result they will announce.”
Governor Makinde appreciated the management and staff of Silverbird for the honour it had done to him and the people of Oyo State, commending the organisation for making an impact on the society through journalism.
Earlier, thevice chairman of Silverbird’s Editorial Board, Mr. Jacob Akinyemi-Johnson, stated that the governor polled 70 per cent of the votes to defeat other nominees, indicating that the public had been following his trajectory of good governance.”
