Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti
Former acting Governor and Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) chieftain in Ekiti State, Hon. Tunji Odeyemi, yesterday threatened to dump the party over alleged plot to impose a candidate in the botched Ekiti South federal constituency II, where he was an aspirant.
The aggrieved PDP chieftain, who is one of the aspirants that contested the Ekiti South constituency 2 in the last primary, decried the manner with which the party leadership was handling the disrupted shadow poll.
Speaking with the journalists in Ado Ekiti yesterday, Odeyemi explained that the exercise was disrupted midway and no results announced, wondering why the party was suggesting that the name of an aspirant should be submitted to the national secretariat as the winner rather than conducting another poll.
According to him, “The name of one Jennifer Emiola from Omuo-Ekiti, where the PDP picked its senatorial candidate, had been submitted.”
Odeyemi, therefore, wondered why a candidate would be picked in an election that was marred with violence and no winner was declared.
He said he has been consistent in loyalty and membership to PDP in the last 22 years, but going by the recent developments in the party, particularly in Ekiti State, he may have no other choice to than to pitch his tent with another political party.
The party chieftain stated in the three local government areas that comprise the federal constituency-Ekiti East, Emure and Gbonyin-that only Gbonyin had been left out in the scheme of things.
The PDP man said: “The deputy governorship candidate of the PDP, Kolapo Kolade, is from Emure, while the senatorial candidate, Biodun Olujimi, is from Ekiti East, so with these arrangements, the party cannot pick the House Representatives candidate from Ekiti East, leaving out Gbonyin LGA out of the political equation.”
Odeyemi said his denial of the House of Representatives ticket for the Ekiti South federal constituency 2 revealed that his loyalty to PDP has not been appreciated.
“Since I left the House of Assembly, every agreement I have with the leadership of PDP in Ekiti tate has being breached.
“In the just concluded National Assembly primary of PDP, I vied for the House ticket of Ekiti South federal constituency 2. The primary which was held on May 22 was marred with violence and irregularities.”
Odeyemi was the Ekiti State House of Assembly Speaker (2008-2011) and acting governor between February 2009 and May 2009.
