Ogun APC Guber Primary: Abiodun Clinches Second Term Ticket Amidst Protest

Gov. Abiodun

ABEOKUTA – The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has  emerged winner of the state governorship primary of the All Progressives Congress.

In the primary election conducted at the MKO International Stadium, Abeokuta, five other aspirants contested against the governor.

The aspirants include Olubiyi Otegbeye, Mrs Modele Sarafa- Yussuf, Mr Owodunni Opayemi, Remilekun Bakare and Abdukadir Akinlade.

Of the six aapirants, only Abiodun, attended the primary, while agents of all other aspirants, announced their presence and did what was expected of them.

Giving the details of the  election, that was conducted in a peaceful atmosphere,  the Chairman of the Ogun State  APC Primary Election  Committee, Chief Wale Ohu, disclosed that 1,180 delegates, from the 20 local governments, were accredited for the exercise.

Announcing the results, Ohu, said Abiodun scored 1,168 votes, while other aapirants, did not secure any vote, saying that two votes were voided.

Prior to the commencement of the process, Ohu, announced to the delegates and all the leaders of the party that attended the event, that all required agents, were present.

Ohu took time to read out names of the officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other officials of the APC officials that were sent from the National Secretariat.

In his acceptance speech, Abiodun, who described the results of the exercise as overwhelming and Tsunami like, commended the delegates and party supporters, for their peaceful behaviour, during the event.

The governor, who promised to work more for the development of people and the state, said the reward for hard work, is more work.

He enjoined the people of the state and party supporters, to shun camping of calumny and joins hands for the development of the state. 

Meanwhile, barely few hours into the conduct of the exercise, Akinlade and Otegbeye passed vote of no confidence on the 5-man election panel under the chairmanship of Chief Wale Ohu.

They declared that Chief Ohu, as the chairman of the gubernatorial primary election in the state, lacked the capacity and integrity to conduct “an objective and the impartial” gubernatorial primary election for the state on the ground that “he is a partisan politician”.

In a statement issued in Abeokuta and jointly signed by Akinlade and Otegbeye, they queried the credentials of Ohu to have earned him the chairmanship of the election committee, alleging that previous exercises which he handled for APC in the state still accounted for the prevailing disaffection among party members.

They alleged that the Ohu-led APC governorship election panel did not make available to them, the delegate's form as stipulated in the guidelines for the conduct of the exercise, but made such available to Governor Dapo Abiodun.

The duo said though, they would participate in the primary election because of their loyalty to the party and respect for its leadership, they, however, warned that post gubernatorial primary election dispute may be inevitable if the election panel failed to make available the authentic delegates list to the other aspirants before the commencement of the exercise.