Governorship aspirants of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ondo State are in a race to secure delegates ahead of the primary scheduled for July 22.
Aspirants certified to contest at the party’s primary are Deputy Governor Agboola Ajayi; Ayorinde Bode, Ebiseni Sola, Eyitayo Jegede, Kunlere Boluwaji, Okunomo Banji Ben, Olafeso Eddy, and Godday Erewa.
About 2500 delegates are expected to participate at the primary.
Last weekend, some PDP staged a late-night protest at the Heritage Hotel in Akure after they got the hint that some party leaders planned to change the list of delegates in favor of the Deputy Governor.
The protesters said money exchanged hands to replace names of the elected wards and local governments’ delegates across the state.
They accused the Acting state Chairman, Engr. Clement Faboyede, of working in connivance with Ajayi to change the list.
But Ondo PDP spokesman, Zadok Akintoye, who confirmed the protest, said he was not aware of any bribery allegations.
Akintoye said: “I didn’t see the Deputy governor at the event but I saw three other aspirants and I know the party will react at an appropriate time.”
Chief Press Secretary to the Deputy Governor, Babatope Okeowo, described the allegation as laughable and false and an attempt to blackmail members of the committee who were in the state for the compilation of the Adhoc delegates’ list for the party primary.
Okeowo said his boss was not at the Heritage hotel to bribe the Committee as alleged.
He said it was embarrassing and disgraceful that some PDP gubernatorial aspirants could descend to telling lies that his boss and his campaign team were at the hotel that night to bribe members of the committee.
“The Deputy Governor has become the nightmare of his political adversaries within PDP and their allies in the All Progressives Congress, (APC) in the state because of his political capital and rising acceptance popularity.
“For purposes of clarity and unsuspecting members of the public who may be hoodwinked in this celebrate falsehood, the Deputy Governor never visited the venue of the Congress. Not even when all the aspirants were invited on 9th July 2020.
“Hon Agboola Ajayi has said repeatedly that he is not desperate for PDP’s ticket but would make himself available for party members among the array of qualified aspirants of the party seeking the ticket of the party for October 10, 2020 governorship election.
“The Deputy Governor and members of the Pre-election campaign committee are not deterred by this baseless and wicked lie being told about his person and that of his election team.”
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