By Banji Ayoola
Preparations for the July 20 governorship primary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Ondo State are intensifying as the aspirants have scaled up their campaigns to party delegates who would vote in a direct mode.
Altogether, 12 aspirants, including the incumbent Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, are jostling for the party’s flag in next week’s exercise. The governor’s camp prefers the direct mode of primary whereby only the party’s delegates would pick the party’s candidate for the October 10 governorship election.
On the other hand, all the other 11 aspirants want indirect primary, believing that direct primary would provide a level playing ground for all as against direct primary.
The other aspirants are Engr. Ifeoluwa Oyedele, Hon Isaacs Kekemeke, Mrs Jumoke Anifowose-Ajasin, Dr Segun Abraham, Chief Olusola Oke, Ambassador Olusola Iji, Mr. Jimi Odimayo, Mr Bukola Adetula, Mr Olayide Adelami, Mr Nat Adojutelegan and Mr Akin Akinsehinwa.
According to NAN, the aspirants have changed their campaign tactics to wooing party delegates instead of meeting all party members at their various engagements.
This, according to sources, was because the Caretaker Committee has not shifted grounds on the mode of primary.
On Monday, Kekemeke sent out 3000 letters he personally signed to 3000 delegates assuring them that he would treat them as an important part of his administration if elected and would not use them for party primary election and later dump them.
Kekemeke also explained his six cardinal programmes in the letter which included free and compulsory primary and secondary education, quality and affordable health care, food sufficiency amongst others.
Also, Akeredolu has scheduled to meet with delegates from the three senatorial districts on different days ahead of Monday’s primary.
On his own, Oyedele who was said to have met with delegates from Ondo South Wednesday said meeting with delegates was the same as meeting all party members.
Also, spokesman for Oke, Rotimi Ogunleye, said Oke was in Akoko area to meet with party members and leaders.
Ogunleye stated that the issue of direct mode of primaries has been settled in the protest letter written by 11 aspirants.
He said any attempt to hold indirect primaries with party executives would amount to disregard for the APC constitution.
One of the aspirants who refused to be named said their fears are that APC governors have hijacked the pary and appeared not ready to compromise on the issue of indirect primary mode.
“The Caretaker Committee is not forth coming and procrastinating on the issue of the mode of primary, the best thing is for us to begin our own work and mobilise to displace the governor because while we were in Abuja, he was busy inducing the delegates. So we are all back home to slug it out with him”.
Meanwhile, some aspirants especially those from Ondo South were said to have begun jostling to be nominated as running mate to Akeredolu.
It was gathered that those seeking to be running mate saw the position as a leeway for easy succession in 2024 since the Southern senatorial district would be expected to produce the next Governor if Akeredolu wins.
In a letter signed by the 11 governorship aspirants to the APC Caretaker Committee Chairman, Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State, in Abuja on Friday, the 11 aspirants requested the party to adopt direct primary for the nomination of its governorship flag bearer.
The letter was signed by Joseph Olusola Iji, Odimayo Okunjimi, Olayide Owolabi Adelaml, Issacs Duerimini Kekemeke, Olusola Oke, lfeoluwa 0yedele and Olajumoke Olubusola, Awodeyi Akinsehinwa, Akinola Colinus, Olubukola Adetula, Abraham Olusegun Michael and Nathaniel Adojutelegan.
INEC had on Thursday published on its website that the APC had adopted indirect mode for the governorship primary.
The 11 governorship aspirants said: “Having interfaced with party members as aspirants, we can confidently inform you that the overwhelming majority of our party members prefer Direct Primary for the nomination of the party’s candidate for the 2020 governorship election.
“It is our position that adopting Indirect Primary Election in Ondo State, given the prevailing mood and circumstances is hazardous and result in litigation which will not help our party.
“We most humbly insist that Direct Primary be adopted as was peacefully utilised in Edo, Osun, Lagos, Oyo and Ogun States.”
They said the direct primary will provide a level playing ground for all aspirants and assist in no small measure in mobilising party members to own the candidature of whoever emerges from the process.
“The consequence of knowingly opening the race to all willing members of the party by allowing them to invest time, energy and huge resources only to hand over victory to one of the aspirants by adopting a mode only favourable to that aspirant, is too grave to imagine given the prevailing mode generally in the state and particularly in the party,” they said.
