Adagunodo re-elected Osun PDP chairman

•Faction boycotts, says congress one-sided

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State at its congress yesterday re-elected Olasoji Adagunodo as the chairman.

Adagunodo and Dr. Bayo Faforiji were factional chairmen of PDP.

Last Saturday, PDP organised local government and ward congresses across the state.

While many leaders, including Senator Olu Alabi and the lawmaker representing Osun West Senatorial District, Ademola Adeleke, described the exercise as successful, Dr. Bayo Faforiji, a factional chairman loyal to Senator Iyiola Omisore, said his group was not carried along.

He said his faction did not participate in the congress because the electoral committee was “one-sided.”

Party members and delegates, including prominent leaders yesterday thronged Osogbo City Stadium for the state congress where Adagunodo emerged as the chairman.

In attendance were the former National Secretary, Prof. Wale Ladipo; ex-Deputy Governor and former Minister of State for Defence Erelu Olusola Obada; ex-Minister for Youth Development Senator Akinlabi Olasunkanmi; former National Deputy Chairman Shuaib Oyedokun and a member of the House of Representatives, Oluwole Oke.

Others included former Secretary to the Osun State Government Alhaji Fatai Akinbade; Prince Ade Fadahunsi; ex-Chairman of the party in the state Gani Ola-Oluwa; former Speaker House of Assembly Adejare Bello; Senator Felix Ogunwale; House of Assembly members; Dipo Eluwole; a member of the House of Representatives, Albert Adeogun; Senator Olu Alabi; Nathaniel Oke SAN, among others.

The national secretariat of the PDP sent Emmanuel Agbor to serve as the chairman, Electoral Committee of the congress.

In his acceptance speech, the newly- elected chairman called on aggrieved members to support him in “rescuing the state from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).”

Adagunodo said: “Let me take this opportunity to extend a hand of friendship to our fellow contestants, who also offered themselves for the service of our party in various positions.

“I assure you that the fact that you lost in this election does not mean you are less competent to run the affairs of the party.

“We shall ensure that no member suffers any form of discrimination on the basis of his or her previous affiliation during our crisis period. We shall, in word and in deed, show that truly, there are no victors and there are no vanquished.

“PDP will by the grace of God provide the much needed rallying point for teachers, civil servants, doctors, farmers, students, pensioners and all the great people of Osun State, who have been impoverished by the Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola administration in the last seven and a half years.

“It is unimaginable that a governor who inherited an economically viable and socially stable state from the PDP on November 2010 has turned the state into the most heavily indebted state in Nigeria and one with the lowest sustainability index by 2018.

“For members of other parties who have been indicating interest in joining the PDP, but were constrained by the crisis of the last two years, I want to tell you that the siege is now over and our doors are open for you to come and join us.”

APC in Osun State has advised PDP to face its crisis and sort out itself.

It said PDP should stop hallucinating on how to ‘wrest’ power from the ruling party.

In a statement, the party through its spokesperson, Kunle Oyatomi, said it was shameful that PDP could not conduct “an ordinary ward congress in unity,” adding that it could not stand in the way of the “progressive APC.”

The statement reads: “In the last three years or so, PDP has embroiled in fractional leadership crisis, fighting over who should control the party, which has generated into having two secretariats up until now.

“They are unserious and can’t rule over the good people of Osun who have been enjoying dividends of democracy over seven years now. Osun cannot afford to make a wrong decision because that will be inviting the evil that is waiting in the wings to destroy the glorious achievements that Osun has seen since 2010. The state has changed for the better.”

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