Ekiti may know its authentic Governor today, two years after the original ballot in 2007, and nearly two weeks after the rerun ordered by the Court of Appeal which sacked Segun Oni from the job this year.

Oni, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), today squares up with Kayode Fayemi of the Action Congress (AC) in the final vote in Oye, the last of the 10 councils in the second take.

State INEC Public Relations Officer, Olubunmi Popoola, confirmed that the election will hold between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.

And Ekiti AC Chairman, Jide Awe, said his party is ready for it, even though, in his view, the people have "lost confidence in Maurice Iwu," Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Ayoka Adebayo, returned to Ado Ekiti on Monday with tight security, having last week rescinded her decision to quit because of the alleged pressure on her to go against her conscience.

She arrived the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office at about 2.17 p.m. in a Prado jeep marked Abuja SA 69 ABC, accompanied by security personnel headed by Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), John Ahmodu, from Force Headquarters, and Ekiti Director of State Security Service (SSS), Florence Ikanome.

Soldiers were also in the retinue.

The city was shut down as thousands of party supporters, artisans, and traditional groups, including masquerades, stormed the streets to protest alleged plan by the PDP to rig the vote in favour of Oni.

They warned Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro, and INEC Chairman, Maurice Iwu, to allow Adebayo to do her job according to her conscience.

They urged Adebayo to take the advice of President Umaru Yar'Adua and allow her conscience and the fear of God to govern her actions.

But INEC sources informed Daily Independent that Mrs. Adebayo has the sole responsibility to conduct the rerun poll. "The Commission has given her the full authority to do it alone. Not even the National Commissioners would be there today because all of them will be attending an official function in Abuja where INEC will play host to traditional rulers frm across the country."

However, the PDP and the AC are trading accusations of plans to rig.

Bola Ogunlade, Co-ordinator of Positive Force which supports the AC, alleged that Iyiola Omisore, a PDP Senator, was flown into Ekiti Government House on Monday to spearhead the party's plot.

Ogunlade said "he was flown in a helicopter marked 5N-SGE, in white and green colour, even as there is evidence the PDP has perfected plan to bribe electoral officers with cash inducements of N60,000 for each Presiding Officer and N200,000 for the Electoral Officers, a deal which blew open when some of the INEC officials concerned claimed being shortchanged.

"Sources in the Government House said Omisore might have flown in already thumb-printed ballot papers. The ballot papers were allegedly transferred into a waiting vehicle with registration no FGN 84 V01 occupied by Dayo Adeyeye, Femi Ijakoko, Oni's thug and others. The vehicle headed straight to Oye.

"The fear is heightened by the presence of DIG Ishola Filani and other PDP top members who were in the same helicopter. There have been reports for the past few days that members of the PDP and the police are in an unholy alliance to perpetrate fraud in favour of the PDP to subvert the wishes of Ekiti electorate."

Dayo Adeyeye, Chairman of Media and Publicity Committee of the Segun Oni Campaign Organisation (SOCO), countered that "the AC is in possession of large number of ballot papers, which they procured from unofficial sources at INEC in Abuja.

"The AC and its corrupt leaders are desirous of using the ballot papers for a variety of purposes which include stuffing ballot boxes and mixing the fake ballot papers with genuine ones to discredit the election.

"If the first two plans fail, they intend to use the ballot papers for voting after the actual voting on Tuesday. This involves using highly induced INEC officials to substitute the original ballots in the ballot boxes and latter call for ballot recount at the tribunal."

In response, Okiro has deployed 10,000 police officers in Ekiti to head off trouble.

Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Emmanuel Ojukwu, said he could not confirm if all of them will be in Oye, but noted that the nature of violence there when ballot was held in the other nine councils on April 25 was worrisome.

Former Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari, flayed Yar'Adua for the "misgovernance and the creation of inertia and total confusion in the country."

Buhari - All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Presidential candidate in 2003 and 2007 - noted that while it took less than two days to conduct the general election in South Africa, it is taking weeks to have a rerun ballot in just 10 councils in Ekiti.

He spoke at the weekend in Eke, Enugu State during the burial of Patricia, mother of Osita Okechukwu, National Publicity Secretary of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP).

Buhari, represented by Buba Galadima, lamented the despair, despondency, and hopelessness in the land, and urged Nigerians to stand up and defend democracy.

He moaned about the failure of the government to provide welfare and security, in spite of abundant resources, then implored his fellow country men and women to support electoral reform, which is the only way to restore the sanctity of the ballot box.

He questioned Yar'Adua's rejection of the core elements of the recommendations of the panel headed by Muhammadu Uwais.

By Rotimi Akinwumi (Abuja),Gbenga Sodeinde (Ado Ekiti) and Emmanuel Nzomiwu (Enugu)