2019: Fayose planning to Sell-out PDP to another party- Aggrieved aspirants

Yemi Adedeji, Abuja

The aspirants wondered why the governor is determined to impose a candidate, in person of  Ayodeji Oladimeji on other aspirants ahead of the October 3 primary having being made to cough out over N2.2 million naira for the purchase of forms.

One of the aggrieved aspirants, who pleaded anonymity told Elendu Reports on phone on Monday that they were screened at the party secretariat in Ado Ekiti, but were not cleared because they were accused of not paying the party dues, and not paying their taxes as at when due.

The aspirant who spoke on behalf of the eight others explained that the law about taxation was moribund, following its nullification by a supreme court judgment.

He also said that the appeal committee that was supposed to sit two days after the screening was done did not show up till now, alleging that it was a a well executed plan by the governor to favour his candidate.

He stated: “We are nine in number that collect the forms for the House of Representatives. We are being victimised, we are being disenfranchised, they are trying to usurp our democratic free will.

“We have been battling for like a week plus now to ensure that we are cleared by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party, and to our utter dismay they are not doing anything about it. Nobody is even looking at the laws of the party any longer. This whole thing is being ran as if we are in a banana republic.”

“We are disenfranchised, we are not happy at all. They have made us to work hand-in-hand  with our delegates, they have made us spend quality time and resources and at the end of the day, one man will just stand up and say no! You can’t go for primary, that I am imposing my own candidate, this is very unfair to democracy that these people have been talking about.”

The aspirant stated categorically that the governor has no right to impose candidate on them.

He noted: “As at yesterday, we were made to understand from the PDP National Publicity Secretary of the party, Kola Ologbondiyan,  that the NWC has made a decision to clear us but they have to seek the governor’s consent,

“That in the first instance, is an aberration. The governor does not have right over candidate and moreover the governor has less than 16 days in office, so what are they trying to do?

“Our take on this is that the aspirants collectively believe that the governor wants to sell out the party to another political party, that is why is hellbent on holding on to power, even when the time is up,” he said.

He said what they are demanding for is a free and fair primary, adding that they will exhaust all party avenues to resolve the issue, before  seeking redress in a competent court of law.