Oyo: APC, PDP in war of words over Appeal Court ruling

Fireworks between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) over the Appeal court ruling of November 11, 2019 on the March 9 governorship election in Oyo state continued on Monday, with the PDP firing back at an allegation by the APC of a plan to whip up undue sentiments and stampede the Supreme court into arriving at a declarative judgment on the subsisting case.

The APC in a statement by its Assistant Publicity Secretary, Mr Ayobami Adejumo had dropped the first salvo, stating that Governor Seyi Makinde and his party, the PDP had concluded plans to heat up the polity and curry public sympathy through several street protests, media write-ups and broadcasts up until the date for the Supreme court judgment.

According to the APC, the plan uncovered was that the PDP would be devoting huge sums of money to influence media content with a view to set an agenda for the general public and mislead the judiciary.

While appealing for fairness on the part of media practitioners, the APC asserted belief in the Supreme Court to deliver justice and reveal electoral fraud perpetrated by the PDP in the March 9 election.

“Feelers from the Agodi Government House have it that different groups of unscrupulous elements in the society are already lined up for sponsored protests to be carried out consistently in Abuja and Ibadan any moment from now until the day of the judgment which they know would not be in their favour on account of the reality of the electoral fraud which earned them the fake mandate they currently enjoy.

“Also, we are aware of a secret meeting held recently at a private location in the state capital in which some media practitioners in Lagos and Ibadan were contracted, with heavy sums, to influence media content of their respective print and broadcast organizations with a view to set a satanic agenda for the general public and possibly mislead the Judiciary again.

ALSO READ: I hope to meet armed robber who raped me in 2004 ― Ibru

“In demonstration of their desperation to hold on to a stolen mandate, Gov. Makinde and his lackeys have concluded plans to devote enormous resources of the state to certain activities aimed at misleading the Supreme Court over the all-important case before it. In fact, the arrowhead of the plot is a turncoat currently serving in the PDP government and who is popular for constituting a nuisance in the mass media at any given opportunity,’ the APC statement read.

Reacting, Publicity Secretary of the PDP in Oyo state, Mr Akeem Olatunji described the allegations by the APC as lies, propaganda and an attempt to deceive the fickle-minded and unsuspecting persons.

Arguing that the acceptance of Makinde by residents of Oyo state was incontrovertible, going by his victory at the polls, the PDP held that Makinde, therefore, did not have to prove his popularity by engineering street protests.

According to the PDP, the Appeal Court actually nailed the petition by the APC and its candidate, Chief Adebayo Adelabu as incompetent and useless.

Maintaining that the APC had a bad case from the outset, the PDP posited that the APC had only embarked on a wild goose chase.

“They know that they have no case, but being characters who are not ashamed of telling lies in the open, they are attempting to deceive the fickle-minded and the unsuspecting persons. But they have a bad case from the outset. They indeed have no case, we all know. Even their candidate knows he is in a wide goose chase.

“Let us put it on record that the truth cannot be coloured no matter how hard you try and so Governor Seyi Makinde needs not engineer street protests to justify his acceptance by the people of Oyo State. He, has, rather than encourage street protests, been calming down the people all these days so as to ensure peace continues to reign in the state.

“Let no APC propagandist go about telling lies and conjuring things in their head about Governor Seyi Makinde sponsoring protests. We need to let them know that the Governor cannot stop the people from freely expressing their love for him anytime they so wish.

‘But it needed to be said that the Governor has spent the past weeks calming the people down and urging them to face their jobs because his mandate is intact. The Court of Appeal which ruled on the Adebayo Adelabu and APC’s petition actually nailed the petition as incompetent and useless. There is nothing that will tamper with the mandate freely and widely given to Governor Seyi Makinde because the people are firmly behind him,’ the PDP statement read.