- PDP Has Crumbled In Osun State, Says Ex-Gov Oyetola
By Abiola Olawale
A member of the Board of Trustees (BoT), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and former Deputy National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Shuaib Oyedokun has been officially welcomed into the fold of the All Progressives Congress (APC) chapter of Osun State.
Oyedokun as well as a governorship aspirant of PDP in the 2022 election in Osun State were received by the APC at an event held at the APC secretariat in Osogbo, the capital of Osun State, on Friday.
Oyedokun, a notable personality within the political circle in Osun State had announced his decision to dump the PDP in a resignation letter issued on Thursday and addressed to the acting National Chairman of the party, Umar Damagum.
He said his decision to dump PDP was reached after wide consultations with his loyalists.
He said he would be joining APC, where his experience, efforts, and leadership roles would be valued and appreciated.
The resignation letter reads in part: “As a functional member and leader of PDP (Ward 13, Jagun/ Osi-Bale Ode, Odo-Otin South Local Government, Osun State,) whose high electoral productivity and value have been credibly and positively acknowledged in my ward, across the local council, state and country-wide for the enhancement of the fortune of the PDP, I have the honour (though with pain) in announcing the renunciation of my membership of the party on principle, having observed that the ideals of we, founding members, had been sorely contaminated.
“In taking this step which is not even without due consultation with my teaming loyalists in the PDP, I have consequently decided to shift my allegiance to the All Progressives Congress (APC) where I believe my experience, efforts and leadership roles would be valued and appreciated.”
Welcoming the two prominent individuals, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, on Friday in Osogbo declared that the fortune of the ruling PDP in Osun State has nosedived.
Oyetola, the immediate past Governor of Osun State said the decision of Oyedokun and Babayemi to join the APC despite not being in power in the state shows that the party is a strong force.
The ex-Osun State Governor also expressed his confidence that the party will triumph in the forthcoming 2026 governorship election of Osun state.
He said: “It is an irony that we lost an election over a year ago and there has been no major defection from the party. What we have is the reverse. It is the ruling party that is coming to us, which shows that APC remains a party to beat. We have done so well, and people are starting to see that when it comes to governance, the progressive knows how to.
“The way President Bola Tinubu has been governing us, that is what the APC governors in their respective states have been doing. I am delighted for the fact that we are not just getting anybody, but people of substance. Like Baba Suaibu, he is a veteran member of the PDP, decamping to the APC. It shows that PDP doesn’t exist any longer here.
“I am confident that in 2026 we are going to take over the state. This is just the beginning because several people are willing to come back to us, and a lot of political heavyweights are coming to join us. I welcome Dotun Babayemi and Alhaji Suiabu Oyedokun to the progressives.”
