Polls: Oyo Labour Party Candidates Fault Claim of Supporting PDP, APC

Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

The crisis rocking the Labour Party (LP) in Oyo State has taken another dimension as all the candidates contesting for House of Assembly and the gubernatorial elections in the state have dissociated themselves from any form of alliance with both the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The disclosure was made yesterday, in a communique read by one of the House of Assembly candidates representing Ibadan South East Constituency 2, Ayodeji Babalola, at a press conference after a meeting held at Obi/Datti Campaign office, Oke-Ado, Ibadan, the state capital.

The communique was signed by other candidates that included Mr. Kayode Adejumo-Bello, Ibadan North Constituency 2; Mr. Temidayo Taiwo, Ibadan South-West Constituency 2;  Mrs. Oluwatoyin Okunlola, Oluyole State Constituency and Mr. Summonu Musa, Ibadan -East Constituency 2.

The state Working Committee of the party had on Sunday, during a press conference addressed by the Chairman, Atayese Sodiq, adopted Governor Seyi Makinde of the PDP as its gubernatorial candidate in this Saturday’s election

But speaking with journalists, the LP candidates insisted that they were still in the race and would participate actively in the gubernatorial and House of Assembly elections on Saturday, stating that they have not adopted or have any plan to adopt candidates of either the ruling party in the state, PDP or the APC.

The communique read in part, “Our attention has been drawn to a news item making the rounds in both the traditional and social media, on the declaration of support for the PDP and APC by some minority factions of the leadership of Labour Party in Oyo State towards the forthcoming gubernatorial and state House of Assembly elections in the state, an action that was taken unilaterally and in pursuit of personal agenda and aggrandisement.

“The movement and all candidates hereby totally dissociate themselves from the selfish stand of those negligible and greedy elements. The entire public is hereby put on notice to beware of this desperate move.

“We like to put on record that, the Obi-dient Movement is an Assemblage of over 120 Support Groups who are attracted to politics (as it were) by their interest in the aspiration of H.E Peter Obi to become the President of this great country, hence the acronym: Obi-dient.

“Therefore, majority of us are card carrying members of LP and at the same time very staunch members of the Obi-dient Movement. This same support for our master is unequivocally extended to all candidates of the party nationwide and in Oyo state particularly.”

Speaking further, he said: “In the light of the declaration, it therefore becomes incumbent on us to come out clearly to declare our stand on the declaration of these factions of leaders within the Labour Party in Oyo State.

“All Obi-dient members are hereby urged to remain calm, maintain status quo ante bellum, while we go out enmasse on Saturday to massively vote for all our state assembly candidates and our gubernatorial candidate, Taofiq Tayo Akinwale.”