Ondo Poll: Protests Against INEC’s Action Persist as Assembly, PDP Chieftains Join

James Sowole in Akure

Protests against the recognition of Dr Jimoh Ibrahim as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ondo State continued on Saturday as another protest was staged in Akure , the state capital by hundreds of chieftains and members of Ahmed Makarfi’s faction of the party.

Loyalists of the replaced candidate of the party, Mr Eyitayo Jegede, had on Friday also taken to the streets of major towns of Akure, Owo, Ondo, Ikare, Isua and Ilaje to protest the substitution of his name by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) sequel to a court order.

Saturday’s protesters, who were led by the chairman of the faction, Mr. Clement Faboyede, insisted that Jimoh Ibrahim would never be the candidate of the party for the November 26 governorship election.

Earlier, the Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Mrs. Jumoke Akindele, who spoke with journalists on behalf of the PDP members in the Assembly, also insisted that Jegede was the candidate of the PDP.

The speaker stated that Ibrahim was not a member of the party .

Akindele said there was no crisis in the party but some bad eggs in the party were the ones causing confusion and distraction in the party.

She called on the people of the state to ” rise for the defence of the truth”.

” We know our people gave their mandate to Jegede, injustice is currently working in our land, the transverse of justice must not stand. Jimoh Ibrahim is not known to the party.

” We condemned the advance of political fraud, such injustice can not stand, we stand to say no, the position of law is clear on this matter .President Buhari should not let injustice disrupt his government.

“We want to use this opportunity to appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari not to allow democracy in Ondo State to be derailed. Ondo State is historically a political sensitive state as the citizenry, conscious of their rights would not allow any external force to elect or impose any governorship candidate on them. “

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