Adebutu not Ogun PDP governorship candidate, says factional exco

The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State took another twist on Tuesday as a faction led by Samson Bamgbose rejected Oladipupo Adebutu, and declared Mr Segun Awoyomi as the party’s authentic governorship candidate.

Bamgbose, at a press conference held in Abeokuta, said the PDP primary election produced Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu as the governorship candidate of the party was a charade that should be disregarded.

Tribune Online reports that while Adebutu emerged last month at a primary conducted at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, another contender, Chief Segun Showunmi, claimed victory at a separate factional primary held in another location.

However, the Bamgbose exco argued that the National Working Committee of the party had no right to present a certificate of return to any governorship candidate based on subsisting judgement.

Bamgbose flanked by other party executives, insisted that only the party in the state has the right to print and sell nomination forms, conduct congresses and submit names of successful candidates to INEC.

The factional chairman maintained the stance that the party in 2016 obtained a judgement in a suit number FHC/L/ C8/ 636/2016 authenticating the Bayo Dayo-led state executive, which stated that the exco can neither be dissolved nor harmonized. He added that the said judgement was never set aside or appealed.

“In 2016, there was a judgement. The judgement emanated when there were parallel congresses conducted under the late Senator Buruji Kashamu and Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu’s factions.

“The judgement FHC/L/C8/636/2016 recognizes the Engr. Bayo Dayo led exco as the authentic State exco. That the state exco can never be dissolved nor harmonized.

“The Adebutu faction refused to vacate the order or appealed the judgement because they thought it was a child’s play.

“This whole scenario snowballed into 2018 when it dawned on them that the judgment was a stumbling block. They approached the Appeal Court and they were informed that the judgment was not appealed within the time frame and same was the position of the Supreme Court when they approached it,” said Bamgbose.

While buttressing Bamgbose, the party’s factional secretary, Mr Raphael Olaosebikan, said that the judgement delivered by Justice Muhammed in a suit number FHC/ ABJ/ CS/ 208/ 2020 is still very much alive, confirming the exco as the authentic one

He informed that the party primary for all elective posts was duly contested and candidates emerged for different positions

Olaosebikan said all the candidates that emerged from the primaries had filled their INEC forms and that the forms would be forwarded to the electoral body.

“Let me make it clear that we have conducted primary elections into all available elective offices as vested on the Ogun State Exco of PDP ably led by us in accordance with the laws of the land as confirmed by various subsisting court judgments, ” he added.