Connect with us

Politics

Rumble in Oyo APC as Minister Shittu labels Gov Ajimobi a dictator, betrayer

Published

on

Minister Shittu sues APC over gov'ship primary

Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, has expressed joy that Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi, would soon end his governorship tenure and exit the party leadership.

This comes as the minister weekend described Ajimobi as “a dictator” and “a betrayer” and said that his faction of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) would salvage the party in Oyo State from the ‘bad’ effects of the outgoing governor and those he deceived to prey on the party.

Shittu, who spoke on a live radio programme on Fresh FM in Ibadan, tagged South West Political Circuit, regretted that APC headquarters allowed itself to be forced to accept those who were not qualified as its executive members in Oyo State.

Adams Oshiomhole led national leadership of the APC had disqualified Shittu from contesting the governorship primary of the APC in Oyo on the argument that the minister failed to participate in the compulsory one-year national service conducted by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

Running battles between Shittu’s and Ajimobi-led factions of the APC in Oyo State is believed by many to have accounted for the reason the party lost the 2019 governorship election in the state to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Only last week, a court dismissed Shittu’s suit challenging his disqualification by the APC for not participating in the NYSC.

However, speaking at the weekend radio programme, Shittu vowed that it was about time his faction of the APC, the Unity Forum, salvaged the party from “predators.”

He said, “Let me recall, during the congresses in Oyo state, we had two congresses; two factions of our party held parallel congresses. The governor’s faction and the Unity Forum faction, which has members four times that of the governor’s faction.

“Our party leaders at the national level by force accepted those who are not qualified as party executives.

“Eventually, what happened started from there. We are in court challenging to know the legally recognised executives of the party. The Unity Forum will certainly ensure that justice is done in the area of party congresses.

“That is what we are challenging, the emergence of the current executives. They have to be true to themselves that but for Ajimobi, they will not be there.

“Governor Ajimobi did what he did so that he could use them. He foisted on the party the people who will continue to do his bidding.

READ ALSO: RIVERS: ‘I have ended my ambition for 2019’ – Magnus Abe

“Clearly Ajimobi is a dictator, a betrayer; clearly everything you could think of. Now that he has gone, we have to rescue all of those people away from him.

“Our lawyer unjustly terminated the cases in court. I have instructed lawyers from my chambers to apply for the revisit of those cases and I have all the support of all members of the Unity Forum to do that.

“We are all waiting to collaborate in ensuring that we retrieve our party from predators.

“We will bring everybody on board, we will retrieve our party. We will start soonest by the grace of God.”

He denied during the programme, the rumour that several members of Unity Forum had deserted APC for other parties.

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