More trouble in Ogun PDP as party asks IGP to arrest governorship aspirant, others for alleged forgery

The Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State has demanded the arrest of a governorship aspirant, Jimi Lawal, and four others over alleged forgery.

The quartet are – Bola Odumosu, Ajadi Fasiu, Kola Akinyemi, and Tope Ashiru.

The party had earlier this week suspended the five members for allegedly conducting a primary election without the approval of the State Working Committee.

In a petition dated October 18, 2020, the PDP Organising Secretary in the state, Kola Ogunyemi, asked the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, to arrest the five members for alleged forgery, impersonation, threat to life, and conducts likely to cause a breach of peace.

The petition was signed by Ogunyemi’s lawyer, Dr. Oladimeji Balogun of Swiss Attorneys in Abeokuta, the state capital.

He alleged that the five men conspired and sent a letter to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), inviting the commission to attend and monitor a fresh primary election in the state.

Ogunyemi said his signature was sighted on the letter even though he never signed it.

The Federal High Court, Abeokuta, had on September 3 nullified the PDP primary election in Ogun State and ordered the party to conduct a fresh election in the state.

In the petition, the organising secretary said the forged letter by Lawal’s camp had caused confusion in the party, and incited members against him.

READ ALSO: Ogun PDP suspends governorship aspirant, 4 others over ‘illegal primary’

It read: “Our client denies prior knowledge of the said letter and states that the said letter which was purportedly signed on his behalf does not represent our client’s resolve to follow the directives and the overriding decisions of the Peoples Democratic Party.

“The persons who issued the letter are mischievous impostors whose impersonation was not inadvertent. It was directed towards maligning our client and destroying his fast-emerging political popularity.”

“Our client has been subjected to physical attacks with a plethora of threats, blaming our client for issuing the said insensitive, inappropriate, and irresponsible correspondence with sheer disregard to the party’s resolve to challenge the judgment delivered by the Federal High Court at the court of Appeal.

“Our client can no longer sleep with his eyes closed as he receives calls threatening his life and that of his beloved ones, demanding that our client give a logical reason for the issuance of the letter.

“Members of the PDP now relate with our client with scorn, tagging him as a dissident within the party.

“We know as a fact that unless your office intervenes and investigates our client’s petition, the respondents will continue to defame our client and all that he stands for.

“We therefore humbly request that your good office investigates our client’s petition and bring the respondents to book.”

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now