- Says an over-ambitious politician is behind the false report
The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ilaje local government council area of Ondo State has said there is no crisis or rancour over the endorsement of Banji Ben Okunomo as the sole governorship aspirant of the party from the local government.
The Chief Scribe of the party in the local government, Evg. Ikunogbon Banjo, on behalf of all the executives that endorsed Okunomo, the PDP said on Saturday, in a statement made available to newsmen in Akure, that the endorsement of Okunomo is not an embargo that can stop any of the aspirants from buying the nomination form of the party to participate in the upcoming PDP primaries.
Starnews NG reports that barely 24 hours Okunomo was endorsed by 21 Local Government Executives of Ilaje PDP, not less down 35 wards executive members of the party out of 48 across the 12 wards of the local government further concurred with the endorsement of Okunomo on Friday.
The full statement reads:
”Our attention has been drawn to the rumour making the round on social media that there are crisis and confusion in the camp of the people’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State over the endorsement of Banji Ben Okunomo by the executive’s members of the party across the 12 wards.”
”It was stated in the false report being circulated online that some members of the local government executives have denied the endorsement of Banji Okunomo as sole governorship aspirant of our party in the local government.”
”For the record, there was no place the excos denied such an endorsement. We challenge anyone to provide to the public a joint denial paper signed by the 21 of us to substantiate this claim.”
”There was no one who pulled out from this arrangement put in place to have one governorship aspirant from the local government.”
”For the record, when Okunomo was endorsed, 21 of us came together to endorse him. 21 out of 30 local government excos resolved for Okunomo and we signed a joint paper and appended our signatures and designations on the same joint paper.”
”Again, yesterday, we reaffirmed our earlier decision in a separate statement and we even put our direct phone numbers in the joint statement for onward verification by anyone.”
”Consequently, barely 24 hours we endorsed Okunomo, 35 wards executive members of the party out of 48 across the 12 wards of Ilaje local government further concurred with the endorsement of Okunomo done by the 21 of us being the majority members of the local government excos in Ilaje LGA.”
”They did not only concur to the endorsement, they also appended their signatures on a joint document to reinforce our resolution for Banji Okunomo as the adopted sole governorship aspirant of PDP in Ilaje local government of Ondo State.”
”The public should disregard any individual statement flying on social media which were not officially and jointly signed by all the Exocs with their signatures on a paper. We knew that an aspirant who is sufficiently aggrieved with our decision that Okunomo was preferred as our choice was behind those concocted, an unauthorised, unofficial and unsigned individual statement credited to three of our members.”
”The statement of individual denial on social media is a ruse fabricated by the said aspirant to misinform members of the public, create confusion, and to create the impression to the unsuspecting public as if our party, the PDP, in Ilaje government is in crisis.”
”However, we wish to clear by saying that the endorsement of Banji Okunomo by us does not stop any aspirant in our local government from contesting at the primaries. We only exercised our constitutional rights of freedom of expression as to who we think could win the ticket of the party and eventually defeat Akeredolu in the upcoming governorship election in Ondo State.”
”Our endorsement is not an embargo that can stop any of the aspirants from buying the nomination form of the party to participate in the upcoming PDP primaries.”
”Politics is a game of number. Simple Majority will always prevail and that’s the beauty of democracy.”
”While we set up a reconciliation committee, we enjoin all the aspirants not happy with our decision to sheath their swords by allowing the interest of the local government to be paramount in their hearts instead of their personal political interests.”
”Ilaje PDP is one, free of crisis or rancour,” said Ikunogbon in the statement.
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