Ogun PDP Guber Aspirant Wants New Primary, Threatens Litigation

James Sowole in Abeokuta

Aggrieved by the conduct of the Peoples’ Democratic Party’ (PDP),  gubernatorial primary in Ogun State, an aspirant, Mr. Jimi Lawal, has written to the National Chairman of PDP, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, to ask the party to conduct a new primary in the state or be ready for litigation.

Lawal’s request was contained in a letter entitled “Complaint of Manipulation of Ogun State PDP Delegates List in the Ogun State Governorship Primaries,” which was addressed to PDP chairman and made available to journalists.

He also copied the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), alleged that the delegates list used for the primary was fake.

Lawal threatened  litigation if the party failed to investigate the allegation, cancel the primary and order for another one, having discovered that the delegates list used during the primary was manipulated.

The party had held its governorship primary in the state on Thursday, which produced a former Member of the House of Representatives from Remo-North Constituency, Mr. Oladipupo Adebutu, as the candidate.

Two governorship candidates had emerged from two separate primaries of the party that were held in two different locations on the same day.

The candidates are Mr. Segun Showunmi, who emerged from the exercise conducted at the NUJ Press Centre, Iwe Iroyin, and Adebutu that emerged from the primary that took place at Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta and which Lawal had set to participate before crisis broke out.

However, Lawal stormed out of the venue of the primary when confusion ensued over the list of delegates to be used for the election.

Lawal, in a letter that was written by the law office of Frank Tietie, Esq, claimed that the authentic list was manipulated to contain names of people that were not elected at the state ward congress.

The petition reads: “We are a firm of solicitors and barristers whose services have been retained by Otunba Jimi Adebisi Lawal (JAL), a governorship aspirant of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State and hereby raise the alarm on the use of a fake delegates’ list in the conduct of the May 25, governorship primaries elections of the PDP in the state.

“This use of the fake and manipulated delegates’ list was first observed during the just concluded primaries which were held on May 21, 2022, to elect the party’s candidates for the State House of Assembly elections.

“Thus, the authentic list was manipulated to include new and unfounded names that were not elected at the state ward congress, thereby giving rise to two lists- one that is authentic and containing the truly and correctly elected delegates as against the other list that was manipulated and relied upon by the national officials of the party that conducted the primaries elections in the state.

“The concern, therefore, is that the said fake list was used in the just concluded governorship primaries which marred the whole exercise, makes it illegitimate and would be subjected to litigation if the national leadership of the party does not immediately investigate and confirm the irregularity and nullify it.”

Lawal asked the party leadership to compare the two lists and do the needful to ensure transparency and credibility of the primaries of the PDP in the state.

“Therefore, we hereby apply that the two lists hitherto attached to this letter be compared with the original results of the PDP’s ward congress of Ogun State which held on Saturday, April 30, 2022, and was observed and reported by INEC as this is the only way to ensure transparency, credibility and safeguard the integrity of the primaries of the PDP in Ogun State.

“Further to the above, we expect the position of the party to immediately confirm the authenticity of the delegates list used for the primaries election and where it has been found to be fake, to immediately cancel and nullify the just concluded primaries.”