LAGOS State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday expressed shock over the attack the party’s 2019 governorship candidate, Mr Jimi Agbaje, made against PDP former Deputy National Chairman, Chief Olabode George, declaring that such outburst coming from Agbaje did not portray himself as a thoroughbred Yoruba man.
Agbaje had in a report published in many national dailies in reaction to an alleged statement made by Chief George that he (Agbaje) had crossed over to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), describing such statement as “concoctions of a sick mind.”
Chairman of the party, Dr Adegbola Dominic alongside an aide to Chief George, Prince Uthman Shodipe-Dosunmu, said this at a press conference, even they declared that Agbaje, who was picked from nowhere by Chief George and offered the party ticket first in 2015, ran the 2019 governorship election unprepared to win.
According to Dominic, Agbaje won the ticket of the party against the wishes of many party leaders and notwithstanding was supported by all and sundry, including George.
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“Agbaje obviously didn’t want to win the election,” the party boss said, adding that the party’s standard-bearer ensured that he dodged the party leadership so that they were not part of his campaign throughout contrary to what he was trying to make the public believe.
“We invited him to let us run the campaign, he was dodging. As the Chairman, he didn’t invite me for any campaign rally. He was doing a Town Hall meeting which was not even well attended.
“We invited him and advised him on how to run the campaign but he shunned the party leaders. It was obvious he didn’t come to win. During the Presidential Election, people voted massively for Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (the party’s Presidential candidate) but when it comes to the governorship election, we lost woefully,” Dominic said.
He said it was shocking for Agbaje to attack Chief George, who he described as “a leader well respected within and outside Lagos,” declaring that without the PDP leader, Agbaje would not have gotten the PDP ticket.
“Many of us did not support him because we knew the kind of character he is. Immediately after the 2015 election, he disappeared and came back in 2019. We still supported him but he obviously didn’t want to win,” he added.
Also speaking, Prince Shodipe-Dosunmu, described the statement attributed to Agbaje as disgusting.
According to him, “When you refer to an elder, your greatest benefactor in PDP as somebody of a sick mind, it is tragic, unacceptable, unbecoming of somebody brought up in the Yoruba tradition.”
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