Ambassador Olusola Iji, Left, presenting his nomination form to Ondo State APC Chairman, Engr. Ade Adetimehin
- Envoy canvasses unity within party, politics without bitterness
- “He is a true progressive and our founding father’ – Adetimehin
By Banji Ayoola
Nigerian envoy to the Republic of Benin, Ambassador Olusola Iji, has said that he is hopeful of winning the coming primary to be conducted by the All Progressives Congress, APC, for its governorship aspirants in Ondo State.
He spoke on Thursday at the party’s state secretariat in Akure, where he had gone to intimate the party formally of his intention to contest the coming party’s governorship primary after purchasing his nomination form at the party headquarters in Abuja.
A statement by the party’s Director, Media and Publicity, Mr Steve Otaloro said that the envoy was received by the party’s state chairman, Engr Ade Adetimehin, who described him as a true progressive and a founding father of the party in the state.
Iji said that he believed the way to go is to inform the state ExCo first as charity begins at home, and as the custodian of the party in the state, whose leadership he duly subscribed to, and being a former chairman himself, he very much justified the reason for his visit.
He praised the leader of the party in the state, Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, for what he called the good work of infrastructure development across the state and the beautiful face-lift given to the state capital as a worthy cause and a thing of pride to the party.
Iji canvassed unity within the party, stressing the need for all the party’s aspirants to close ranks and imbibe the principle of politics without bitterness among themselves.
He said: “I have never said any negative comment about the governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, before and would never do so in spite of us pursuing the same ambition. The governor is my friend and brother whom I have the cause to support his ambition for governorship in the past.
“Let us say I publicly attack him and he eventually wins our party ticket in the coming primary, how would I have possibly paraphrase this opprobrious conduct in the public space to sell his candidacy to the electorate.”
The envoy said he preferred to be in the opposition within the party in government than to allow the party to lose the election through anti-party activities and be in the opposition to another party in government.
While seeking for fairness and equity in the consideration for who becomes the next governor of the state and the zone, he promised to lead by example if elected as the governor.
He reiterated his commitment to the purse of the party through developmental levy.
In his speech, Adetimehin, praised Iji for his unalloyed loyalty to the course of the party, adding that the envoy is a true progressive to the core
He praised Iji for the visit as exemplary and wished him success in his ambition. He assured him of a level playing ground to test his popularity among party members who are, invariably, going to be the deciders of who becomes the party’s standard bearer in the general election.
Adetimehin wished Iji a successful outing at the primary, while also seeking for the support of all the aspirants in the party to embrace the choice of the party to prevail at the end of the primary exercise slated for July 20.
