Primaries: No imposition of candidates in Kwara PDP, says chairman

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State has said that the consensus arrangement used in the party’s primaries was unanimously agreed upon by the party’s stakeholders, saying there was no imposition of candidates.

It is recalled that some youth in Offa, Offa local government area of the state, last week, staged a protest against the consensus arrangement process for the Ifelodun/Offa/Oyun federal constituency for the 2023 elections, describing it as an imposition.

Speaking with journalists in Offa on Monday, the Kwara South senatorial chairman of the PDP, Comrade Bisi Fakayode, said that it is the people that decided what they wanted.

Comrade Fakayode, who said the leadership of the party had held a meeting with eight House of Representatives aspirants in the constituency on Friday, April 1, 2022, added that the meeting could not be concluded because of three new entrants.

He said another meeting scheduled for Saturday, April 2, 2022, was attended by all the eight aspirants and the Senatorial Central Working Committee members of the PDP.

“The agenda was to discuss the modality to pick the candidate for Ifelodun/Offa/Oyun Constituency House of Representatives.

At the meeting, the aspirants were campaigning either for youth, gender, or other causes.

“In the end, they resolved that a consensus candidate could not be picked among them, and they would not contemplate primary election as the election could lead to bloodshed in Offa. In the circumstance, they would wish that the party leadership just pick any of them; and they would all work for whoever was picked. They drafted the resolution and all eight of them signed it.

“I forwarded the resolution to the State Chairman of our party (PDP).

On Thursday, April 9, 2022, the state leadership of the party summoned us to a meeting at llorin. All the eight aspirants were at the meeting.

“They were interviewed on the following: their contributions to the party, the qualities of the candidate that the Offa community would prefer, why they want to go to the House of Representatives etc.

“The eight of them wanted the party leadership to choose any of them, but the leadership declined. At this point, the aspirants themselves suggested that the party could consult with opinion leaders in Offa on the appropriate candidate to be picked. The party agreed to this suggestion.

“After due consultations with Offa community leaders, it was discovered that all the aspirants were good but Hon. Hassan Oyeleke was the most preferred candidate.

“Apart from the position of the community leaders that favour Hassan Oyeleke, one other factor that further favoured him was the agreement reached between Danlad and Oyeleke with the party leadership in 2015. Oyeleke was persuaded to step down for Danlad then, with the promise that he would be considered whenever Offa had a similar opportunity in future. Further in 2019, Hon. Oyeleke was persuaded again to allow Hon. Danlad to go so that he can be ranked for the benefit of the constituency.

“That opportunity has fortunately come now for Hon. Hassan Oyeleke. This, the party stakeholders and leaders see as fairness, equity and justice.

The party leader, who emphasized that five aspirants from Offa originally expressed interest in the House of Representatives seat, added that “Three others joined later and they were accommodated. All the eight aspirants are qualified to fly our party’s flag, but only one can be picked at a time. That was what happened. There was no imposition from any quarter. The Kwara South senatorial leadership of the PDP accepts full responsibility for all the candidates that have so far emerged.”

YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

We Have Not Had Water Supply In Months ― Abeokuta Residents

In spite of the huge investment in the water sector by the government and international organisations, water scarcity has grown to become a perennial nightmare for residents of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. This report x-rays the lives and experiences of residents in getting clean, potable and affordable water amidst the surge of COVID-19 cases in the state…No imposition of candidates  No imposition of candidates

Selfies, video calls and Chinese documentaries: The things you’ll meet onboard Lagos-Ibadan train

The Lagos-Ibadan railway was inaugurated recently for a full paid operation by the Nigerian Railway Corporation after about a year of free test-run. Our reporter joined the train to and fro Lagos from Ibadan and tells his experience in this report…No imposition of candidates  No imposition of candidates