By Abiola Olawale
The aspirants of the governorship ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have continued to talk tough days ahead of the party’s primary election scheduled for April 20.
The recent outburst came on the heels of the announcement of the APC elders in Ondo state, under the aegis of Ondo APC Aborigines, that they have endorsed Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa as their preferred aspirant.
Arising from the meeting which was held in Akure, the state capital on Tuesday, the APC elders said they settled for Aiyedatiwa because he rated highest among the Ondo APC governorship aspirants.
The group’s chairman and a former Ambassador to Togo, Sola Iji, who spoke during a press briefing said the group had screened the over 10 APC governorship aspirants down to three and finally endorsed Aiyedatiwa based on his profile.
Iji said: “We resolved in our first meeting to commit ourselves to a unanimous goal in the forthcoming governorship primary of the APC in the state. We consider this a necessary step towards asserting our true worth in the party.
“Nevertheless, during our second meeting, we unanimously agreed to set up a nine-man committee headed by Honourable (Mrs) Christy Olufowose to identify the various aspirants jostling for the ticket of our party; assess them, using some well-thought-out criteria, and present three of them for further consideration by the leadership of the group.
“In our last meeting, the committee submitted their report wherein Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Honourable Wale Akinterinwa, and Dr Paul Akintelure were recommended.
“Furthermore, the group mandated its leadership to have further consultation and deliberations in arriving at the choice of our preferred aspirant. Consequently, the leadership of the group met, reviewed the committee report, and considered the three recommended aspirants qualified and worthy.
“However, in contriving the choice of our preferred aspirant, the leaders believed that it is normal and conventional to offer the right of first refusal to His Excellency, Honourable Lucky Aiyedatiwa as a sitting governor.”
But the decision was swiftly rejected by the campaign organizations of two other frontline APC governorship aspirants, Wale Akinterinwa and Olusola Oke.
The Wale Akinterinwa Campaign Organisation, in its reaction, described the action of elders as biased saying some of them had earlier declared support for Aiyedatiwa openly.
In a statement titled ‘Who is fooling who?’, the spokesperson for the group, Mr Segun Ajiboye, described the decision of the APC elders as warped.
“If the discussion for endorsement of an aspirant were a matter in the court of law, these elders would have been asked to recuse themselves. Both Ambassador Sola Iji and Senator Ajayi Boroffice (members of the Aborigine) were conspicuously present when Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa declared his intention to contest the election.
“How could these elders have been fair to other aspirants when they, indeed have before now declared their support for Aiyedatiwa?” Ajiboye queried.
In the same vein, the spokesperson for the Olusola Oke Campaign Organisation, Mr Ojo Oyewamide, called the bluff of the endorsement by the APC elders.
Oyewamide said: “The truth is that the Aborigines are well-known supporters of Governor Aiyedatiwa. They had openly endorsed the governor before now. What they have just done is no news to us. Their choice does not amount to that of the party.
“The Aborigines are not superior to other members in terms of membership. We know those who have made great contributions to the development of the party in the state. When the chips are down, we know who is always there for the party and its teeming members.
“We reiterate our belief that Chief Oke will clinch the ticket of our great party at the shadow poll slated for April 20. Our belief is erected on his popularity among members of the party occasioned by his great contributions to the party, experience, and capacity. We also believe that he will secure the mandate of the people of Ondo state at the November 16 governorship election in the state. To us, that will be the real and greatest endorsement.”
