By Banji Ayoola
Ondo State Deputy Governor and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP governorship aspirant, Hon Agboola Ajayi, has warned against disparaging comments against any of his fellow aspirants of the party.
He spoke through the Director General of his campaign organisation, Dr Kola Ademujimi, in a statement noting that the aim of the all the party’s aspirants is to dislodge the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC and not to fight one another.
The statement which was titled: “We cannot thank our teeming supporters and towering party enough,” said the comments about Ajayi being a new member of the PDP is not correct as he is a foundation member of the party.”
Ademujimi said that the Agboola Campaign Organisation would uphold the tenets of democracy before, during and after the party’s primary fixed for Wednesday and the general election fixed for October 10.
According to him, “a political culture of decency and focus has been the hallmark of the campaign organisation since the commencement of the campaign to convince committed and patriotic party faithful to entrust the mandate in the hands Ajayi.”
The statement said of Ajayi: “From 1998 when he joined the PDP, till 2016 when political exigencies drove him out of the party, he has conducted himself as a bridge-builder and a conscious net-worker in and out the party and politics.
“His humility, uncommon large-heartedness and generosity, palpable political dexterity and convincing demonstration of political sportsmanship have consummated his wide acceptance within a short period of his return to the party he helped uphold its umbrella for 18 years.
“We are thankful for this uncommon show of love and trust, which we at the Alfred Agboola Ajayi Campaign Organisation (3ACO) have enjoyed across the 18 LGAs during our statewide tour and assure you that we will never take it for granted.
“The 3ACO is proud of the untiring and creative strategies with which we presented our aspirant as a competent grassroots politician who rose through the ranks to serve in many executive positions at both the party and government levels.
“His legislative experience as a former member of the House of Representatives added to his widely accepted political resume of over three decades among our party members.
“Our campaign issues are purely about positioning our party as a formidable, organised and victory-ready political platform for the sustainable development of party men and women as well as the non-partisan masses, technocrats and civil servants of the Sunshine State.”
Ademujimi “appreciated members of the campaign organisation and well-wishers within the PDP for overcoming the temptation to disparage other contestants in spite of provocations and all odds.”
His words “As an organisation, we have deliberately refrained from hauling abuses at any gubernatorial aspirants, not because of lack of what to say but due to our belief that only one person will emerge as the governorship candidate after the coming primary elections on Wednesday, 22nd of July, 2020 and such insults and invective will be irrevocable to the detriment of the chances of our party in the long run.
“Our collective political experiences and maturity have shown that the onus will yet be on all of us as committed party members, after the primary elections, to campaign for that democratically-elected candidate of our dear party to win the October governorship election in Ondo State.
“We also like to thank our elder statesmen and women who refused to join habitual name-callers and mudslingers in taking up sticks and stones against our enchanting aspirant and his campaign organisers.”
Ademujimi “urged members to pray and work together for a rancor-free, truly democratic, very transparent, evidently fair and generally credible process, so that whoever receives the baton to run the governorship race of the PDP, would definitely oust the current occupiers of the government house by winning the October 2020 Governorship election in Ondo state.”
