Day Ondo SDP lost 3,000 members to APDA

What started like a child’s play within a political family of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Ondo State, last week, snowballed into a real crisis that is set to tear the party apart, as some state executive officers of the party pulled out of the SDP to pitch their tent with the Advanced Peoples Democratic Alliance (APDA). Hakeem Gbadamosi brings the report.

Less than a year after the governorship election in Ondo State,  it is apparent that things have started fallen apart within the camp of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the state, with the mass defection of the members of the party to the little known Advanced Peoples Democratic Alliance (ADPA) in the state. No fewer than 3,000 members, including executive officers of the SDP across the 18 local government areas of the state were received into the APDA fold last week.

Prior to the mass defection, the SDP members, the state chairman of the party, Chief Korede Duyile and the State Publicity Secretary, Mr., Remi Olayiwola had issued a statement placing the state secretary of the party, Dele Ogunbameru and two others executive officers of the party, Lere Adeodu and Rapheal Irona on indefinite suspension for anti party activities.

According to Duyile, “The three men had on several occasions caused serious embarrassments to the party in addition to actions capable of causing disunity among members,” adding that they were “suspended for their flagrant disregard for the party’s constitution, disloyalty, infantile behaviours at public functions and many anti-party activities”

Apart from this, the state chairman stated that the three men reportedly lured members of the SDP to a meeting where they agreed on an unholy alliance with a political party, with an assurance to collapse the SDP structure unto ADPA to make the alliance a formidable force in future election in the state, but without the knowledge and consent of party leadership.

Duyile, who also alleged that the three principal officers were promised juicy gratification, failed to convince

some members of SDP who were lured to the meeting on reasons they need to join the train of the new and less known ADPA. He said, “Some loyal members of the SDP invited to the meeting disagreed with them and immediately reported to the leadership of the party in the state.”

To confirm the development, Ogunbameru, the state secretary was instructed to summon a meeting of the state SDP Executive, but he was said to have refused to call the meeting and the party leadership recommended an indefinite suspension for him and his ally.

“Since no serious political organisation like the SDP would condone flagrant disrespect and disregard to its constitution, the Secretary and the two others stand suspended indefinitely. That their indefinite suspension is being referred to the national headquarters of the SDP in Abuja for necessary action as appropriate.

“That all SDP members in Ondo State should henceforth disregard any action whatsoever that may be taken by the three men on behalf of the SDP.” Duyile said.

But less than 24 hours after their suspension, a drama however played out as Ogunbameru and two others Lere Adeodu and Rapheal Irona openly defected to APDA, in Akure, the state capital, calling off the bluff of the party leadership in state saying SDP is a dead party in the state and had failed in its democratic principles.

Speaking during the defection, Ogunbameru said he had successfully led 11 out of the 20 state executives and over 3,000 members across the 18 local government areas of the state to the state.

Explaining reasons for opting for APDA and not any of the established political parties in the country,alleged that his former party, SDP, APC, PDP and other political parties in the country were fraught with “political blemishes, scar and stain.

“The only reason for joining the APDA is because we see the APDA as a party with a true social democratic principle, ideology and philosophy. Our coming to the party which is relatively new in existence is therefore to strengthen this real social democratic principle that does not exist in all other existing political parties.

“As true progressives, we positively need a brand new political vehicle with a brand new engine, suspension and tyres to run and win the race,” he said.

Receiving the new entrants into the party, National Vice Chairman of APDA, Mr. Akin Akinbobola, said the defection is an indication and revelation of many good things to come to the party and country, predicting mass movement of politicians across political parties to the APDA which will soon become the bride.

Akinbobola said the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other political parties in Nigeria have failed Nigerians to satisfy the yearnings of the people of the country, since the beginning of the present dispensation in 1999, describing the leaders of these failed parties as charlatans and impostors.

According to him, “The ruling APC has only come to deceive Nigerians with their fake anti-corruption crusade. They are even worse than the PDP which they claim to fight in corruption” explaining that no fewer that 10 former governors who had been pronounced as corrupt leaders have pitched their tents with the ruling APC government,  rubbishing the party’s crusade for corruption, and queried “how do you except us to have a better government because they are the same old people, same old wine in new bottle”

He however assured the people that the party that APDA would offer lasting solutions to the manifold problems which have made the people to be poorer, and pledged that the party would provide better platform for effective restructuring of the nation.

The APC Publicity Secretary, Abayomi Adesanya, said his party would not lose sleep over a political party without a structure and described those behind the party in the state as “political jokers and clowns who are looking for cheap political gains and popularity. They are frustrated lots.”

He expressed concerns over the “political blindness” of those who opted to join ADPA from SDP saying the party would soon go into oblivion as it was founded on vague vision, and would soon defect to another viable political platform like APC soon.

He said the APC government led by President Muhammadu Buhari was fighting corruption in the country and winning the war, adding that the hitches experienced were borne out of the undesirable elements in the past, and said “there is no way you fight corruption that it won’t fight back, but the good news is that the cankerworm is becoming fast emaciated and it will soon die.”

Political onlookers in the state however foresaw no future for the new party in the state,  despite the influx of new members in to the party. They were of the opinion that the three main political parties in the state, the ruling APC, the main opposition party,  PDP and the SDP will continue to muscle other less known parties in the state.

According to a political analyst, Ojo Olowolafe,  “it is crystal clear that those behind the formation of APDA used the platform to prepare a soft landing for a faction of PDP and have returned to their home after the court ruling, so APDA is dead on arrival and cannot make any meaningful impact in the state politics.”