Stakeholders in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State have faulted a statement credited to Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu that the party would lose the coming governorship election if he was not picked as the candidate.
The governor, speaking with reporters last weekend in Abuja, was quoted as saying that he was the only person who could win election in the state based on his pedigree, popularity, achievements and acceptability by the majority.
The stakeholders, under the aegis of Unity Forum (UF), otherwise called ‘estranged/aggrieved’ members, in a statement signed by their leader ex-deputy governor Ali Olanusi, described Akeredolu’s statement as that of arrogance.
Unity Forum said: “The greatest calamity that can befall the APC in Ondo State is to give the governorship ticket of the APC to the incumbent governor in the coming election.
“It is a public knowledge that the governor mismanaged the congress of APC in the state, sponsored and campaigned for the candidates of the Action Alliance in the February 16, 2019 elections
“For a governor that engaged openly in anti-party activities and thereby made President Muhammmadu Buhari and other APC candidates to fail in Ondo State during the February 2019 elections; for a governor that his actions have divided his party and created crisis of confidence among members.
“For a governor that disrespects traditional rulers and prominent citizens of the state; for a governor that encouraged capital flight, thereby creating hunger and promoting poverty, his statement is an empty boast.
“Akeredolu has suddenly realised the strength of the party and the futility of his attempts to render the party impotent. He neither accommodates the party leaders in the state nor respects the party leaders at the national level.
“The party will not miss if he so decides to port into the zenith of his political alliance that he thinks will save him from the crisis he created for himself in the APC. In reality, his exit will constitute a reprieve for the party in Ondo State should he find it necessary to go to another party.
“The day of reckoning is just around the corner, as the party he struggled to kill is hale and hearty through the efforts of other credible leaders of the party, who toil day and night to minimize the negative effects of his actions on the party.”