Osun poll: PDP must regain foothold in S/West ― Saraki

SENATE President and the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) 85-man National Campaign Council for Osun State 2018 Governorship Election, Bukola Saraki, has said the former ruling party must use the forthcoming Osun poll to regain its foothold in the South West.

He spoke against the background of the loses the party had suffered in Ondo and Ekiti states which it held under the previous dispensation.

Speaking after the inauguration of the campaign council by the National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, in Abuja on Monday, the Senate President said: “We must reestablish our foothold in the South West because it’s the last before the general election. The government of Osun is the most unpopular, most indebted government in the country.”

Saraki regretted what he observed as “crude method of vote buying,” which he said had dented the image of the country.

While noting that the pride of the country was at stake, he said the party had learnt from it, assuring that his committee would look into the issue

Saraki also observed that key stakeholders had deserted the Osun state All Progressive Congress (APC), as according to him, there was disunity in its camp.

He said “we must capitalise on that,” adding, “we will do our best to deliver Osun state.”

In his address at the occasion, Secondus warned that the PDP would not allow the charade that happened in Ekiti state in July to repeat itself in Osun state.

He said: “Enough is enough! PDP will not tolerate Osun being rigged like Ekiti. We have a popular candidate and the performance of the APC ruling government has been awful with months of salaries owed to workers.

“We are aware that the electoral commission that is supposed to operate as an unbiased umpire in the conduct of elections has suddenly made itself a parastatal of the federal government, conniving with APC and security agencies to exchange results.

“Even security agencies whose allegiance should be to the constitution and people of Nigeria have allowed themselves to behave as if they are operatives of the ruling APC.

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“We decided to set up this high powered committee to demonstrate the importance we attach to this election. All our Presidential aspirants and some state governors are members plus all other critical stakeholders from South West and other parts of the country.”

The National Chairman implored lovers of democracy globally to show more than passing interest in the Osun state election because according to him, the APC is not disposed to conducting the free and fair election.

The party boss alleged that corrupt persons were mobilising and ganging up to use their illicit wealth to reinstall President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC In 2019.

Secondus said that the APC has made itself a safe haven for corrupt persons and they were converging there not only to get relief but to help reinstall them come 2019 for more protection.

He said that the worst form of corruption was rigging of election and buying of votes which he said the APC was perpetuating in the nation’s polity.