Count me out of APC, Mimiko declares

Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State State has said he has no intention of joining the All Progressives Congress, APC.

The governor, who stated this after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, was reacting to insinuations that he may dump the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, following controversies over who flies the flag of the party in Saturday’s governorship election in the state.

It would be recalled that a Federal High Court in Abuja had declared Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim as the authentic candidate of the PDP as against Mimiko’s candidate, Eyitayo Jegede.

In the wake of the listing of Ibrahim’s name by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Mimiko raced to the Presidential Villa, Aso Rock to confer with President Muhammadu Buhari.

His visit on Monday was the second in a short while after receiving Buhari at the Akure Airport on Saturday and appearing at a rally of the APC the same day.

Mimiko however said the courtesy he extended to President Buhari when he led party members to the APC rally in the state on Saturday was done because of his position as the president and had nothing to do with the party he belongs to.

Read also: Just back from Morocco, Buhari off to Malabo

The governor also clarified the purpose of his meetings with the president.

“This is my second visit to the Villa since this crisis in our party started. Like I said, as the Chief Security Officer of my state, if there is any credible threat to security, I owe the responsibility to Nigerians to apprise Mr. President of what is going on in the state.

“Mr. President was in my state to campaign for his party. I extended to him the courtesy of receiving him at the airport and seeing him off as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, not as APC (member).

“I understand that people have speculated that this means I am going to APC. There is nothing of such. I only extended him normal courtesy that protocols demand.

“As a governor and Chief Security Officer of the state, if the President is visiting, no matter the party he belongs to, it is only appropriate for me to extend the courtesy to him. That was what I did in Akure.

“And I have also come to brief him about the security situation in my state”, he said.

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