By Banji Ayoola
The Ondo State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has described as laughable the request by Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu on its candidate in the last govenorship election, Mr Eyitayo Jegede, to join his administration to move the state forward.
Against this backdrop, a former chairman of Ondo East Local Government, Mr Olusiji Akindiose, described Jegede as a hero of democracy.
He said: “EYITAYO JEGEDE (SAN) is a HERO and he has opened us to the consciousness of the rule of law in our DEMOCRACY. He has further expanded and enriched the scope of electoral litigation by pursuing the case up to the apex.
“By his courageous exploit, the question as to who and who violated or protects the sanctity of our constitution is revealed. If the APC can trudge on with constitutional violation, time and tide will adjudge appropriately. Even now, it seems the APC may end up like the egg seller who in an attempt to protect an egg falling from his basket got toppled, fell and lost a whole basket off eggs.”
In a statement today Saturday, titled “Akeredolu’s olive branch: Channel your energies to welfare of Ondo citizens – PDP”, and signed by its spokesman, Mr Kennedy Ikantu Peretei, it said: “It is unthinkable that Akeredolu can ask our candidate to join a government that has pauperised civil servants in the state through the payments of 30% salaries that are not even regular.”
It said: “The Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN while reacting to the Supreme Court Judgement which dismissed the appeal of Eyitayo Jegede, SAN and PDP in a split decision (4-3) in the October, 2020 Governorship had enjoined Jegede to join him to move Ondo State forward. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Ondo State Chapter finds this request laughable.
“Our party and its candidate cannot be part of a government that has thrown out many students of tertiary institutions in the state because their parents can no longer pay the astronomical school fees charged by the Akeredolu Government.
“Our party and its candidate cannot be part of government that has crippled the health care system in the State. We cannot be part of a government that has withdrawn free shuttle buses for school children.
“It is unthinkable that Akeredolu can ask our candidate to join a government that has pauperised civil servants in the state through the payments of 30% salaries that are not even regular. Civil servants now have to take loans to be able to pay house rents or send their children to school. The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology, Okitipupa Chapter has just embarked on an indefinite strike. What has been the government’s response to all these myriad of problems?
“It is important to stress that, before the October 2020 election, Eyitayo Jegede, SAN and the PDP drew up a well articulated manifesto on Education, Health Care delivery, Agriculture, Industrialization, Welfare of Civil Servants and much more in contradistinction to what is obtainable now in the state. To this extent, there is no meeting point between what was designed by the PDP and Akeredeolu’s score card.
“The Supreme Court verdict has also exposed the impunity which is the trademark and the foundation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its Government at all levels. All the seven Justices of the Supreme Court agreed that, Mai Mala Buni acted in clear violation of Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria (as Amended). This has become the talking point of the political space since the judgement was delivered. Our jurisprudence on election matters has been enriched and everyone is grateful to Eyitayo Jegede and the PDP for not allowing the APC to drown our democracy in the sea of their impunity.
“Our party wishes to advise Akeredolu to channel his energies to improving the welfare of Ondo citizens instead of grandstanding and clicking of wine glasses over the Supreme Court Judgement.”
The Supreme Court had in its Wednesday, July, 28 judgment pronounced a 4-3 split decision giving victory to Akeredolu in the October 2020 governorship election.
But Akeredolu’s party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, has fired back through its chairman in the State, Mr Ade Adetimehin, who said that the opposition party’s standpoints were mere media hype.
He told NAN that PDP should release statistics of Akeredolu’s government in comparison to what previously obtained in the state, querying:“When PDP was in government in Ondo State, what did it achieve?’’ hHe said: “This is just media hype. PDP should give statistics.
Akeredolu is the only governor financing three universities at a time. Before now, there was no teaching hospital in the state, but now we are building two gigantic teaching hospitals; one in Akure and one in Ondo. Our doctors could not do their `housemanship’ before the assumption of office of Gov. Akoeredolu.’’
Adetimehin said that PDP’s problem is that it has yet to recover from the Supreme Court’s verdict, noting that the APC’s invitation to the PDP and to Jegede was meant to ask them to defect to the APC.His words: “We are not asking them to join our government since we are not forming a coalition, but we are asking them to defect instead of going through the backdoor.
“They want to take what does not belong to them. In the governorship election, the PDP won in three local council areas, whereas the APC won in 15 local council areas of the state.
“As a student, if an examination is conducted and you score F9 and you want to come back through the backdoor to turn your F9 to pass, is it done?’’
While addressing the jubilant crowds that welcomed him to the state following the Supreme Court verdict, the governor had said he was committed to serving the people of the state, stressing that delivering dividends of good governance remains his top priority.
Noting that the Supreme Court judgment was a call to more service, he added that it was another opportunity to recalibrate and ensure that the yearnings of the people were given front burner attention.
He explained that the APC did not only defeat the PDP at the poll by winning 15 out of the 18 local government areas in the state, but also defeated the opposition party in the court with 12 judges ruling in favour of the APC and only three for the PDP.
His words: “At the Tribunal, the three judges ruled in our favour. It was a unanimous judgement. At the Court of Appeal, all five judges ruled in our favour. At the Supreme Court, four judges ruled in our favour and three in favour of the PDP. We floored the PDP again even in the court.”
The governor had called on his major challenger, Jegede, SAN, to come and join hands with him to work for the development of the state saying: “I want to say that I feel really good myself personally but I think in everything, we just have to give glory and honour to the Almighty.
“God has made it possible and I know that everybody feels happy, rejoicing in whatever the Lord has done. So, we have no other option; all of us are rejoicing in what God has done and I thank the people of Ondo State.
“This matter as you said is being put to rest and there’s no other thing to do other than for us to come together and work for this state.
“Well, as I said before, the stage we are now is for us to recalibrate and at the end of the day, find a way to ensure that the yearnings of our people are satisfied. I know that a lot of our people expect so many things from us. We will give everything it takes.”
