The campaign organisation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ondo State, Agboola Ajayi, says the party is not troubled and “unshaken” over planned defection of former governor Olusegun Mimiko to the All Progressives Congress(APC).
Reports have it that the two term governor of Ondo State and some of his political associates were planning to dump PDP again for APC.
Thefrontrank reports that Mimiko decamped from Alliance for Democracy(AD) to PDP in 2003; and in 2007, the “Iroko; Gbasibe” exponent decamped to Labour Party(LP) to contest the governorship election.
Continuing on his political nomadism, Mimiko in 2014, returned to PDP, and in 2018 defected to Zenith Labour Party(ZLP), while in October 2021, the former governor returned to PDP for the third time.
A statement on Tuesday by Ayo Fadaka, the Media and Publicity Adviser to Ajayi, said the planned defection of Mimiko and his ilks would not affect the chances of PDP and its candidate in the November 16 election.
The statement read: “We take notice of the above misleading headline circulating on social media, while we take exceptions to it, we equally feel duty-bound to let the world know that the PDP remains unperturbed and unshaken about the decamping of a few members that are joining the APC.
“However we also place on record that their leaving has robbed them of the credibility to command followership as they embark on their solo journeys, thus, for the avoidance of doubt, the PDP has not suffered damage due to their departure.
“We also emphatically place on record that previous to their leaving, they have ceased to be relevant to developments within the Party, completely detached from our preparations for the election, and had remained redundant within the Party for a considerable length of time, as such, their leaving cannot be described as a loss to the PDP, so to say! They were excess baggage waiting to be shed.
“We also take cognisance of the misinformation that our Deputy Governorship Candidate, Hon Festus Olanrewaju Akingbaso has resigned his membership of the Party and position as one their infantile conjectures, of course they are welcome to their delirious assumptions.
“However for the avoidance of any doubt, our gubernatorial ticket remains solid, prepared and primed to claim victory in governorship election holding on the 16th of November.
“We also note that Chief Sola Ebiseni who decamped from the Labour Party to contest for the ticket of our Party during the primary elections have now returned to his vomit, of course he is welcome to that.
“Fact of the matter is that he joined us primarily because he had no faith in the strength and clout of that Party to win election in the very first instance, now that he has returned to his Labour Party, and the gubernatorial ticket has been handed over to him and his wayfarer, it is hereby underscored that the Labour Party is not grounded and/or possess any strength to make any effect in the Election.
“We therefore wish to assure the public, our supporters and sympathisers that our preparation to win the election is undisturbed by the actions of these few people and our commitment to win the election and re-birth a new Ondo State where the welfare of the people will be the commanding prerogative of JP the PDP administration, will become manifest by the grace of God and support of the people.”
