Ex-OSOPADEC chair Omojuwa, others dump, PDP for ACN

A former Chairman of the Ondo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commissionhttp://www.agunloye4governor.org/# (OSOPADEC), Chief Adewale Omojuwa, and more than 10,000 of his supporters yesterday defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).

Among the defectors was a former PDP Chairman in Ondo Central Senatorial District, Chief Olu Ilori.

Others include: former PDP State Women’s Leader, Mrs. Folake Omojuwa; former Women's Leader in Akure North Local Government, Mrs. Taiwo Olayiwola; the State Coordinator of National Democratic Reformation (NDR), Mr. Remi Malumi and more than 2,000 members of the group.

They were received in Igbokoda, headquarters of Ilaje Local Government Area, by the ACN chairman in Ondo South Senatorial District, Chief Wale Akintimehin. Others at the event were governorship aspirants including, Dr. Olu Agunloye, Prof Ajayi Boroffice and Olusegun Abraham.

Omojuwa said: “PDP is a dead party in Ondo State. The only party that has people-oriented programmes is the ACN.”

He assured the ACN of his supporters’ readiness to assist the party to win the October 20 governorship election.

Dr. Agunloye assured the new comers of comfortable accommodation in the party.

According to him, the time has come for the state to experience the wind of change blowing across the Southwest.

Economic activities were temporarily put on hold as youth groups danced round the town to show their support for the ACN.

Omojuwa said he and his supporters joined the ACN to liberate the state from the economic woes the present administration has plunged it into.

He described as unfortunate the government, which is a product of the rule of law and justice, could deprive the people of the dividends of democracy and good governance.

The former OSOPADEC chief was optimistic that the ACN would win the forthcoming election.

He cautioned party members against sycophancy.

Omojuwa said: “We are the economic pillar of Ondo State. We are the food basket of Ondo State. We are the breadwinners of Ondo State. But it is a pity that the present government has been denying our people dividends of democracy and good governance.

“When I was the chairman of OSOPADEC, during the last administration in the state, I brought development to my people. They were empowered physically, mentally and economically. It was during my regime that OSOPADEC constructed roads linking Igbokoda with many towns and villages in the coastal areas. This local government has not moved beyond what it was about four years ago.

“I believe it was my kind gesture that brought thousands of PDP and LP members in Ilaje Local Government Area to the ACN today. If you vote for ACN in the coming election, there will be lots of achievements than you even witnessed during my days in OSOPADEC.”

The State Chairman, Contact and Mobilisation Committee of the ACN, Ade Adetimehin and Akintimehin assured the new members of equal rights with old members.


Source: The Nation Newspaper, Monday Edition April 30th, 2012.


http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/news-update/44905-ex-osopadec-chair-omojuwa-others-dump-pdp-for-acn.html

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Ondo burns: ...As hoodlums disrupt Adefarati Memorial Lecture

Hoodlums suspected to be members of the Labour Party (LP) in Ondo State yesterday marred the fifth memorial anniversary lecture organised in honour of the former governor of the state, late Adebayo Adefarati. The LP supporters, who reportedly converged on the party secretariat directly opposite the BTO Event Center in Akure, venue of the lecture, as early as 7.am, sent away the guests billed to at-tend the occasion. They stormed the BTO Hall at about 10.am with dangerous weapons such as cutlasses and broken bottles but they were denied entry into the hall on the ground that they were not invited to the event. It was gathered that the LP members were infuriated and started throwing pebbles at the guests while trying to gain entry into the venue of the event.

The hoodlums remained uncontrollable despite the arrival of the State Com-missioner of Police, Edgar Nanakumo, to the venue of the event. Nanakuumo, who tried to persuade the rampaging LP members, later left the scene without resolving the crisis.

The former chairman of the LP in the state, Dr. Olaiya Oni, who dumped the party for the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in August last year, was attacked by party thugs and his Toyota Camry with registration number Lagos DC296FST badly vandalized.

The Senator who represents Ondo North Senatorial District and ACN governorship aspirant, Prof. Ajayi Boroffice, and former President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Rotimi Ak-eredolu, were not allowed to enter into the hall.

Also seven ACN governorship aspirants including former Commissioner for Finance in the Mimiko administration, Wale Akinterinwa, Chief Ekungba Jamiu and Segun Abraham, also had their vehicles smashed by the thugs. The National Chairman of ACN, Chief Bisi Akande, and Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State who was the guest lecturer could not come to the venue of the event because of the disruption.

Oni, while narrating his ordeal, alleged that the hoodlums were sent by Governor Olusegun Mimiko, saying their mission was to kill him but he escaped through the grace of God.

“Mimiko is a violent man. The Commissioner of Po-lice was there but refused to make any attempt to save my life and I confirm this to you that those security operatives are working according to a script from Mimiko,”

The State Police Public Relations Officer, Adeniran Aremu, confirmed the incident but denied that the State Police Commissioner was at the venue of the event.

SOURCE: NATIONAL MIRROR NEWSPAPER APRIL, 2012.

http://nationalmirroronline.net/news/37743.html

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Agunloye warns Ondo LP against violence

A former Minister of Defence and governorship aspirant in Ondo State on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Dr. Olu Agunloye, yesterday urged politicians to avoid violence. He advised members of the ruling Labour Party (LP) against heating up the polity in their bid to remain in office. Dr. Agunloye spoke in Irun-Akoko where scores of LP and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leaders from Akoko North West Local Government Area defected to ACN through the Omoluabi Platform, the aspirant’s campaign group.

The defectors were led by a House of Assembly aspirant on the platform of the social mega democratic party in the last elections, Prince Joseph Aladesuyi (aka Jotina), and a former youth leader in the LP, Mr Rotimi Osanyiro. The defectors include Adewole Faseesin, a former Secretary of the ruling party in the local government; Mrs Beatrice Aladesuyi, erstwhile Women’s Leader; and David Idowu, a former ex-officio of LP in the local government.

Aladesuyi urged progressives to move en masse into the ACN to accelerate the development of the state and rescue it from the grip of those he described as “grandiose politicians” who have allegedly been looting the treasury. One of Agunloye’s Special Assistants, Jackson Oyedele, received the defectors on behalf of the aspirant. He hailed them for joining other progressives in the ACN.

He said everyone is equal in the party, adding that old and new members have equal opportunities. Agunloye urged the defectors to always exhibit the virtue of Omoluabi (thoroughbred) in their political dealings. The former minister warned that violence is not an attribute of an Omoluabi, saying nobody has a monopoly of violence.

The youth wing of the platform held a rally in Ile-Oluji to mobilise for ACN in the October governorship poll. ACN Acting State Chairman Chief Noah Adesoji praised the youths and Dr. Agunloye for being advocates of peace and developing the party. The state youth leader, Mr Anas Mohhamed, urged the youths to be vigilant during the poll.

He noted that youths have a significant role to play in the poll, saying it would determine their future and save them from inept leadership under the LP government.

 SOURCE: THE NATION NEWSPAPER APRIL18, 2012. http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/news/43517-agunloye-warns-ondo-lp-against-violence.html

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‘Ondo is ready for power shift’ says Agunloye

Ondo State Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) governorship aspirant Dr. Olu Agunloye spoke with Deputy Political Editor of the Nation Newspaper EMMANUEL OLADESU on preparation of the party for the next election. 

WHY did you defect from LP to ACN after losing out at the senatorial primaries in LP? 
I was kicked out of the Labour Party. It was like I was kicked out of the party like a ball. It has nothing to do with falling out with the governor. Ten hours before a particular event, I thought I was a strong member and part and parcel of the LP and everything was going on well. But suddenly it just unfolded and I was asked to step down, and I discovered I was alone. It was that suddenness that led to the phrase ‘kicked out.’ It was five days to the primary, 50 days to the screening of candidates and 10 days to the deadline of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to submit nomination forms. Contrary to what many people say, I did not lose the primary. 

How will the ACN candidate emerge out of 20 aspirants? 
That is not my immediate concern because I believe that the party has the structure to manage the crowd of aspirants. But it is sufficient to say that, at the moment, ACN is the only party that is 50 years old because it has continuously evolved from the Action Group (AG) to the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Alliance for Democracy (AD), and Action Congress and ACN. It has evolved successful ways of selecting or picking candidates. So, I believe that wisdom and justice will prevail and we will pick or select the right person. The reason we have many people coming out to contest is because the wind of change is already blowing in the state and it is not a strange thing to us. The wind that blew the last time is blowing again and now it is the turn of ACN. It is obvious that ACN will win and that is why we see several people coming out to seek the party’s ticket. 

What is your chance at the selection process?
Well, personally, I will say my relationship with the people of Ondo is an added advantage. I have made a lot of effort so far in building the ACN in the state and I have the belief that I command respect in the party and among the people. I have a record of long interaction with the progressives and this will be put into consideration. I have spent the last 10 months building the ACN structure in Ondo and it was not only aimed at winning over party members, but also the voting masses. How can violence be averted in Ondo State during the election? Violence begets violence. When there is absence of justice, there will be violence. When change cannot be allowed to take place peacefully, it will beget violence. Nobody has monopoly of violence. So, let people remain calm and peaceful so that they will not provoke violence. On the issue of ego between ACN and LP, it was the same scenario when Governor Olusegun Mimiko wanted to unseat Olusegun Agagu. The issue then was that 18 councils, the Federal Government and probably the military backed Agagu. A similar scenario is unfolding now. Mimiko is pulling all the resources available to any incumbent and the governorship aspirants are having all the support that can be mustered by all ACN people, not only in Ondo, but also across the entire Southwest and beyond. The power of incumbency has never been enough to protect past governors in Ondo. 

What is your assessment of the LP government? 
Before discussing the issue of performance, I recently went to Irele Council where the people were greeting one another and saying “one governor, one term.” When people of Ondo have made up their mind on one governor, one term, what else do you expect? This is a philosophy that has evolved in Ondo and that can be regarded as one of the basic determinants of election in the state. No past governor ever had more than one term. In terms of performance, the LP performance index is poor. What the government has concentrated on is what they call high mark projects rather than land mark projects. We have a bunch of markets being built and some of them in areas where people cannot use for trading. It does not even matter whether they are in good areas or not, building of markets is just the responsibility of the councils. The government cannot continue to deceive Nigerians with propaganda. Remove the entire road network Agagu constructed, it will be amazing that the LP government has not done much in area of infrastructure. What is the income accruable to the state compared to what the government is doing or has done? They are miles apart and that is why we say his performance is low. More of the things, which we have been doing in the state under Mimiko, are what could be described as wealth cancellation and not wealth creation. There is no sustainable development. If we are to compare what is happening under the present administration with what happened under the late Ajasin, we will be amazed. In those days, the administration of Ajasin, despite the paltry amount that came in, was able to create industries and basic infrastructure for the development of the state. If critical steps are not taken to address the way LP administration is running Ondo, it is going to cause serious problem. This is why many aspirants are coming out. We talk about Mother and Child Hospital, but we do not know who owns it. What is the purpose of having one Mother and Child Hospital when you could have built several Public Health Centres across the state? We just hope that behind all the mega projects, there is no mega fraud. 

How will the candidate of ACN emerge? 
I consider myself close to the ACN governors. I have met them talking either casually or formally at occasions and they have never given any impression that they are under any pressure from Tinubu. The impression I got from them is that they are not able to repay the man for the things he has done for them. The place of Tinubu to the ACN governors is like that of a father to his sons. No son can pay back what his parents invested on him. It is not about issue of pressure but the integrated development strategy for the South West region this is what Tinubu is devoted to. Any reasonable person in the zone would support and embrace the idea. It is going to bring collective development and improvement to the zone with a positive effect on the entire nation and even beyond. It is also going to reduce over-dependence on the proceeds from oil. It is a good idea and no state can afford to be exempted in the arrangement.I have also heard that Tinubu is likely to impose somebody in Ondo, but the question is where did such a thing happen before?


SOURCE: The Nation Newspaper April 18, 2012.

http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/politics/43510-%E2%80%98ondo-is-ready-for-power-shift%E2%80%99.html

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LP Leaders, supporters defect to ACN in Ondo Community

Scores of Labour Party (LP) leaders and members in Ose Local Government Area of Ondo State have defected to the Omoluabi Platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) at Ifon, headquarters of the local government.The defectors, led by Mr. Akindele Dare Wasiu (aka Scorpion), and Baba Odogiyan, a renowned politician, said they were dumping the ruling LP in the state for a forward-looking, progressive party which cares about the welfare and well-being of the residents.The ceremony, which attracted ACN leaders from different parts of the state, was attended by an ACN governorship aspirant, Dr. Olu Agunloye, and other notable leaders of Omoluabi Platform. ACN Chairman in the local government, Mr Ogundimbola Abayomi, thanked the defectors for taking the decision early.  He noted that it is good for progressives to unite and work for the party'S success in the forthcoming governorship election. The party chair hailed Agunloye for supporting ACN in the senatorial district and the state. Agunloye said there are no new or old members in ACN because all of them belong to the same family.  He urged them to work assiduously for the party’s progress at the grassroots and propagate its ideals across the state.  The governorship aspirant warned that the ACN would not condone thuggery, which he alleged was the machinery of the ruling party in the state.  He said: “Violence is not the hallmark of an Omoluabi. But if provoked and pushed to the wall, the result might be unpalatable to peace-loving members of the society.”  Source: The Nation Newspaper, April 9, 2012.

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