SEGUN AYINDE, ABEOKUTA
Some aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress in Ogun State on Monday stormed the Governor’s Office to protest the party’s decision to adopt consensus candidate in their local government areas.
Although the party had announced at its stakeholders’ meeting at the weekend that it would use either direct or indirect primaries in some local government areas that could not settle on consensus candidates ahead of the council polls in the state.
But the protesters, who took to the road leading to the Governor’s Office as early as 7:00am, accused some party leaders in Abeokuta South Local Government Area of trying to impose one Laja Majekodunmi on them in place of the candidate of their choice, Hon. Farouk Akintunde.
They accused the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Hon. Afolabi Afuape and Former Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly, Hon Titi Oseni-Gomez, of wanting to impose Majekodumi – their anointed candidate on them
The protesters, who displayed placards with various inscriptions such as “Let the party choose who they want,” “No true leadership in Abeokuta South” and “We say no money bags in Abeokuta South,” insisted that it was either Akintunde or no other candidate in their council.
Speaking with newsmen, the Chairman Farouk Team, Abeokuta South, Mutiu Ololade, said that APC members kicked against the choice of Majekodunmi, appealing to Governor Dapo Abiodun to intervene in the matter.
Ololade, who spoke through Mr. Oluwafemi Odunewu, said unless the governor intervened the party’s leaders, including Oseni-Gomez and Afuape, might succeed in imposing their own candidate against the wish of the people.
He said, “We are appealing to the state Governor, Dapo Abiodun, to come to the rescue of the people of Abeokuta South from the hand of bad elders that want to deny us of our choice. Farouk is the only person we want as our chairman.
“We want our governor to give us support and give us the person that we want. We have assurance in Alhaji Farouk Akintunde; we don’t have confidence in others because Akintunde is the people’s choice in Abeokuta South Local Government.”