EKITI PDP BRIDGE ON THE VERGE OF COLLAPSE
Being open letter to Dr. Bamanga Tukur for rescue mission
Please Help! Help!! Help!!! Before it is too lateeeee!!!!!!
Your Excellency Sir, I am not a prophet of doom but a concerned member and stakeholder of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti State and I have been compelled to write this open letter to you because of the impending disaster in our great party, the PDP in Ekiti State.
As a loyal party state-man, who is investing his time, energy and resources into the building of the party, I am worried that despite the goodwill and acceptability that our party enjoys based largely on the negative impression of Ekiti people on the present government in the State as opposed to the virtues and achievements of the immediate past PDP government, if we have to face election as we are today, PDP will fail woefully!
HOW IT STARTED
Sir, you are aware of the crises generated by the State Congress of March 18, 2012. Painfully, the crises has continued to degenerate from bad to worse, badly factionalising the party in Ekiti State along the line of the side that “won” the Chairmanship with 318 votes and the candidate that scored 310 votes.
The first sign that there was not going to be a hitch-free Congress was first made manifest on Saturday, March 17, 2012 when delegate lists for Emure and Ekiti South West Local Councils, that were different from the ones submitted by the Transition, Reconciliation and Congress Committee (TRCC) were brought by the Congress Monitoring Committee. Protest over this caused the postponement of the congress till the following day.
On Sunday, March 18, 2012, as against the normal practice everywhere, ACCREDITATION of voters, which is the plank and pillar on which elections stand was fraught with irregularities. Despite the persistent protest, HANDWRITING delegate list for EMURE LOCAL GOVERNMENT was used, instead of the one that emanated from the Ward and LG Congresses, and duly endorsed by the TRCC, and also displayed at the party secretariat. Also, delegate list from Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government was fraught with irregularities, with former members of the Labour Party (LP) that recently decamped to the PDP allowed to contest elections and vote as delegates without first getting WAIVER from the State Working Committee (SWC).
The Congress was therefore “conducted” in an atmosphere of dispute, with the group that had 310 in the Chairmanship election storming out of the venue after the Chairmanship election when the Returning Officer refused a recount of the votes as requested immediately after announcement by the candidate that got 310 votes. The 318 faction alone therefore “conducted” elections into other positions without the 310 group’s participation.
APPEAL PANEL REPORT
Armed with its facts and figures, the 310 faction approached the Appeal Panel duly set up by the National Working Committee (NWC) to look into complaints arising from the State Congress. The Mrs Rolake Ogunlana-led Appeal panelfaulted the Congress and said categorically that the result was not the true wishes of the PDP members in Ekiti State. The Panel went further to recommend that; “to avoid spending money on a new congress, leaders of the party should come together and draw up a list of new members of the SWC, that will be acceptable to all parties.” In clear and unambiguous words, the Appeal Panel recommended HARMONISATION of the State Working Committee.
The BIG Question- Sir, when is the Appeal Panel Report going to be implemented? Or has the Report been SHREDDED as being boasted by the 318 faction?
SUSPENSION OF LG & WARD EXCOS
Since the 318 faction took over the control of the SWC, a whole lot of unthinkable things have happened, which has further caused disunity between the two factions. This included but not limited to the suspension of LG and Ward Chairmen and Executive members in some of the 11 Local Councils under the control of the 310 faction. These LG and Ward Chairmen and Executives had won their elections before the controversial State Congress that produced the present State Exco. It took a warning from the Zonal Working Committee for this horrendous act to be stopped.
Your Excellency Sir, I am aware that the 310 faction had already made a report to your office on the illegal suspension of LG and ward Executives by the 318 State Exco. The report was signed by highly placed members of our party like
Former Deputy Governors, Dr. Sikiru Tae-Lawal,
Chief (Mrs) Biodun Olujimi and
Architect Abiodun Aluko.
Others who signed the report were;
Former Ambassador to Canada and Secretary to the State Government, Amb. Dare Bejide,
Former Acting Governor and Speaker, Rt. Hon. Tunji Odeyemi,
Senator. Ayo Arise,
Former member of the House of Reps, Hon. Wale Aribisala,
Former Senatorial Chairman, Chief Dipo Anisulowo,
Former Speaker of the old Ondo State, Rt. Hon. Femi Akinyemi and
Former member of the State House of Assembly. Hon. Bisi Kolawole.
NEW REGISTRATION OF MEMBERS
Your Excellency Sir, as against your directive that only former members of our party that are willing to return should be registered within 30 days, the 318 State Exco in Ekiti State issued new registers (New Exercise Books) to the wards and directed that new REGISTRATION be conducted for all members! This was done with the intention of SHUTTING out members of the 310 faction from the party, an action that is in direct contrast to our party’s 3R + 3E Agenda.
MY FEAR & WAY FORWARD
As a concerned and loyal party man, I am not deceived by the hatred of Ekiti people for the present government because the reality is that if election is held in Ekiti today, the PDP will lose scandalously! Unless, the 318 and 310 factions are HARMONISED and brought together, wining Ekiti State for our party now or in future will remain a tall dream. THIS IS THE BITTER TRUTH!
It is therefore against this background that I am passionately pleading with you Sir, to look into the Ekiti issue and direct the implementation of the Appeal Panel Report on the State Congress.
If on the alter of exclusions and some individuals or groups’ ambition to have the PDP in Ekiti State in their pockets, we fritter away this golden opportunity to return Ekiti State to the path of good governance that our party is noted for, the present generation of Ekiti people and those yet unborn will never forgive us.
Sir, do not be deceived by sweet mouthed individuals thronging the PDP National Secretariat in Abuja that all is well in Ekiti PDP and that they can deliver the state for PDP. This is blatant and white lie! Any investment made through such individual to deliver Ekiti State would surely go down the drain. Obviously, these people that are positioning themselves for gubernatorial positions and that if it does not work, they would be settled for senatorial positions are political gamblers, exhibiting their typical habit of political harlotry.
Thanking you and other members of PDP NWC in advance for your anticipated prompt action Sir!
Ambassador Gbenga Olofin,
President, Ambassador Gbenga Olofin Movement (AGOM)
