APC Members in Mass Defection to PDP in Akure North LG

Over 4,000 members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) members in Akure North Local Government Area of Ondo State yesterday renounced their membership of the party to join the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The former members of the APC said they decided to pitch their tents with the PDP henceforth because of what they termed the bad reputation of the APC in the state and the hardship its leadership in the country has inflicted on the people.

Receiving the defectors, the state Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, thanked them for their decision to join hands with true progressives to ensure that Ondo State remains a model that it has been for other states in the country and the continent.

Represented by the states Commissioner for Information, Mr. Kayode Akinmade, Mimiko said the APC was planning to privatise the states facilities provided by the PDP government to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor.

Mentioning the Mother and Child Hospitals , Mega schools and Free Bus Shuttle programme as some already penciled down for privatisation if elected to power, Mimiko said if allowed to happen, this would defeat the purpose of establishing them.

According to the leader of the defectors from Ward 9, in the local government, Joseph Owolagba, “It has become glaring that it will be difficult for any party to meet or surpass the achievements of the PDP government in the state.”

Continuing he said: “The hardship in the country is becoming unbearable adding that prices of commodities have soared beyond the reach of the common man.”

Specifically, he mentioned that motor engine oil which he used to buy for about N1,800 is now sold for N3,500, adding also that things have not been this bad in the country, hence the decision to change camp.

He said the achievements of the Mimiko-led PDP government in the state and especially in Akure North local government are enough for any progressive-minded person to identify with the party insisting that “there is no government in the state that has touched the lives of the people of the local government like the present government”

He said the only way that the continuation of this could be guaranteed is to ensure that a PDP government succeed Mimiko.

Apart from the dualised Akure-Oba Ile -Airport road, Owolagba also mentioned the Sunshine Estate, and the appointment of the first female Head of Service in the state, Mrs. Kosemani Kolawole as some of the encouraging deeds of the government towards the local government.

Also speaking at the event which took place in Oba Ile, in Akure North local government, where the Commissioner for Youth and Sport, Mr. Dayo Aude was also present, the Deputy Chairman of the PDP in the state, Hon. Fatai Adams, praised the government for his sense of dedication and achievements recorded in the state and the local government which he said are visible to everybody, hence the decision of the former APC members to defect to the PDP.