Society Gists

Stakeholders in Ekiti State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), yesterday, adopted the Senate Minority Leader, Mrs Abiodun Olujimi, as the leader of the party in the state and southwest.

The PDP leaders also called for the disbandment of the State Working Committee of party in the state, urging the national chairman of the party, Chief Uche Secondus, to dissolve the executive and set up a caretaker committee to pilot the party’s affairs.

Mrs Olujimi is presently representing Ekiti South Senatorial District at the upper chamber of the National Assembly.

At the party stakeholders’ meeting held in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, yesterday, the stakeholders premised their decision to pass vote of no confidence in the Chief Gboyega Oguntuase-led SWC of the party on alleged  financial recklessness  being exhibited by members of the executive.

The sign that all was not well with the party became obvious last Thursday, when some party members stormed the state secretariat of the party in Ado Ekiti to chase out officials and workers and also lock up the office.

In a communiqué signed at the end of the stakeholders’ meeting, the party said the decision was taken to install Olujimi as the leader, owing to the fact that she remains the most top ranking elected official in the state and southwest.

The resolution, signed and read by the Protem Secretary of the PDP Stakeholders and former Assembly member, Hon Bunmi Olugbade, also overruled the SWC on the suspension of former state secretary of the party, Dr Tope Aluko, saying he remains a bonafide member of the party.

They voiced their support for the candidacy of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and other candidates in Ekiti to win the 2019 elections.

It said: “We are poised to reposition and return the PDP to the people and therefore call on the party leadership to constitute an independent committee to look into the  affairs of the party in Ekiti State  with a view to repositioning the party for the 2019 elections.

“That there is an urgent need for reconciliation and the panacea for true reconciliation is the immediate dissolution of the present state working committee of the PDP and a constitution of caretaker committee.

“That we appreciate the efforts of Dr Aluko in discovering and detecting the illegal and suspicious withdrawals by members of the SWC and hereby urge Senator Olujimi to liaise with the national working committee to freeze the party’s account in Ekiti with immediate effect.

“That Senator Olujimi should constitute Advisory committee in all the 16 local governments to midwife reconciliation and also finance to strategise and mobilise funds for the party.

“That we appeal to our members who are aggrieved or sitting on the fence to come back to the party. Again, we stand by our party national exco, our presidential candidate, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, the various candidates in Ekiti State and promise to vote for them substantially”, it concluded.

Speaking with newsmen after the meeting, Senator Olujimi said Fayose was excluded from the meeting owing to the fact that Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had just released him from detention over alleged financial fraud.

“We know what he might have passed through by staying in detention and we know it might not be easy for him to attend this meeting, so there is no faction at all in our party. My being appointed the leader does not mean there is crisis.

“The very day he left office was the day he was summoned by EFCC and we know the rigour he had passed through”, she added.

She added further: “We are going to work together, I mean with former governor Fayose. What we are doing is that, we don’t want to allow his exit from office to mean the end of PDP in Ekiti.

“So, let me assure our supporters that we are on the same page with former Governor Fayose and other stakeholders. We are not factionalised and we shall work hard and ensure we win in next year’s election”.