Members of the Social Democratic Party, SDP in Oyo State, in their hundreds yesterday, unanimously adopted Governor Seyi Makinde for his second term bid and other candidates vying for elective positions on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in the state.
The party, which was led to the event held at the Youth Event Center behind ICPC Office, Samonda, Ibadan, by its former governorship in 2019, Chief Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN), while giving reasons for their defection, decried the high-handedness in their former political party.
He also cited the crisis that has been trailing the leadership of the party.
According to him: “SDP has since 2019 been given support to the state governor Engr. Seyi Makinde and that support has not stopped, so today the leaders of the party thought it wise that we publicly declared that support for him, so that is what we’ve come to do here today.”
“Like have always said there can be only one governor at a time. If I cannot fulfill my ambition to be the governor in 2019 and the person that fulfilled that ambition with my support does the thing that I would have wished to do for my people, then I think I should keep supporting him.”
“What Seyi Makinde’s administration is doing in Oyo State are things that I would have loved to do for my people if I’m a governor.”
“There can only be one governor at a time, so if he is there and he’s doing the right thing, I think the best thing for us is to support him and we should give him another chance to complete all the projects he has embacked upon,” Ayorinde said.
Earlier, the National Deputy Secretary of the party, Adewole Adeshina, who also doubles as the highest national officer of party in the state, hinted that the party at the national level is currently battling with internal crisis.
He said: “We are having a case which is at the court at the national level, and this has been on for about three to four years now and it is just coming to an end because we are having the next hearing by February 24, there are two factions in the party and I belong to the main faction because we are the plaintiff in the court.”
“We must take a decision because of our teeming supporters that are asking for directions most especially as we approache the election days; we must look around and see who fits into the agenda of SDP, and that is why today we have adopted Engr. Seyi Makinde who incidentally was our candidate.”
“I’m happy to say that I was opportune to have introduced Governor Makinde into the SDP in 2014 where he contested on the party platform in 2015, and people decided that they want to have a presidential candidate of their own and they have adopted Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu and that is what we have come to do here today.”
“Those of us that are here today are the real founding fathers of SDP, and we have said this is our choice and that is our position for now as we approach general elections,” he stated.
A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting by Alhaji Kola Balogun, the chairman of the party in the state, indicated that all the state executives of SDP, as well as all local govt delegates from all the 33 LGAs of the state, inducing the stakeholders jointly make the declaration of adopting Governor Seyi Makinde and all the PDP candidates in the state as SDP candidates.
The communiqué stated further: “We are all aware of the legal battle pending in Abuja Fed High Court 5 wherein we are the plaintiff, during the course of this legal battle the court had made an interim pronouncement that all sides should maintain status quo.”
“In furthering of this at our national convention on 31st May 2022 in Merit House, Abuja the Convention took a decision that all officers democratically elected in March 2016 remain recognized until the case is determined.”
“In this regard, we salute our nat executives led by the National Chairman Chief Supo Shonibare for strengthening the Party up to this moment, equally at an exploratory meeting with the defendants in Lagos on September 27 last year, our party took a decision that besides the presidential office, each state is free to support any other political party’s candidate in other positions contested in this 2023 elections.”
“Consequent upon this, Hon. Kola Balogun led by Oyo State executives had communicated the same to all the 33 LGAs. I am happy that there is general consensus to support the incumbent governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde because of the laudable project he is doing in Oyo State,” the communiqué stated.
