Femi Ogbonnikan In Abeokuta
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday held a closed-door meeting with chieftains of the various political parties and security agencies, ahead of the 2019 general elections in the state.
The meeting, which was held at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) in Abeokuta, lasted about two hours and was attended by representatives of four political parties in the state.
The political parties in attendance, include the All Progressives Congress (APC), Allied Peoples’ Movement (APM), Action Democratic Party (ADP) and the African Democratic Congress (ADC)
Also, the security agencies that were represented at the meeting include Nigeria Police, Nigerian Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corpse (NSCDC) and Department of State Service (DSS).
The Chairman of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Mr Wale Egunleti, described it as fruitful, saying the meeting centred around the need to maintain peace before, during and after the forthcoming general elections in the state.
Egunleti said, “We talked basically about the peace of Ogun and we all agreed that acts of violence and thuggery would not be tolerated in the state. We are trying to serve the people and we agreed to show good examples by maintaining peace and decorum in our activities throughout the election period. “Ogun state is known for peace and we have all agreed to collaborate to maintain the enviable standard. The elder statesman has advised us to shun violence to enable us have peaceful elections.
“He also advised us to always inform the security agencies whenever we are going out on campaign in order to avoid clash with other political parties,” the party chairman explained.
Egunleti, therefore, noted that the participants resolved to meet regularly to review activities for increased collaboration and to enhance a free, fair and credible elections in the state.
He urged members and supporters of various political parties to be accommodating and tolerant of each other for successful peaceful elections slated for February 16 and March 2.
