Politics
17 council chairmen from Edo PDP joins APC
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Seventeen out of the 18 local government chairmen in Edo State on Wednesday defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the ruling All Progressives Congress.
However, the acting Chairman of Oredo Local Government, Harrison Izekor, was notably absent from the defection ceremony, which took place at the New Festival Hall in the Government House.
The LG chairmen defection comes days after PDP lawmakers in the state House of Assembly defected to the APC, giving the ruling party majority status in the legislature.
On Wednesday, Governor Mondday Okpebholo welcomed the new members to the APC, praising their courage and political foresight in making the decision to leave the PDP.
He emphasised the transformation his administration had brought to the state in just four months, highlighting his efforts to change the state’s narrative and improve the lives of its people.
“Let me draw your minds back to where we are coming from as an administration. We practically met Edo that was not working when we came into office. What we met in Edo were insecurity, killings, looting of state treasury using consultants to deceive Edo people and other backward policies implemented by the Obaseki-led administration, but we came and changed the narrative,” he said.
Governor Okpebholo also expressed gratitude to former Governor Adams Oshiomhole, Senator representing Edo North, and the APC State Chairman, Jarret Tenebe, for their continuous support.
He thanked the councillors for voicing the concerns of their communities, which ultimately led to the impeachment of the previous chairmen and the appointment of the new ones.
He said, “I also thank the councillors who spoke for their various communities through the impeachment exercises in the councils and subsequent appointment of these new chairmen across the 17 local government areas of the State.”
Okpebholo and his deputy, Dennis Idahosa, reiterated their commitment to the state’s development, stating that they had come to rescue Edo State from its previous state of decline.
He said: “We are committed to the development of Edo State. We have come to rescue the state.”
The governor expressed hope that more opposition party leaders would join the APC due to his administration’s infrastructural strides.
He added: “I am optimistic that leaders of the opposition parties in the state would join the APC fold following my infrastructural development strides in the state.”
The party’s secretary, Lawrence Okah, who received the new members, urged them to unite with existing APC members to support the governor’s vision for a developed Edo State.
He said: “The desire of the governor is to unite the State and ensure the people enjoy the dividends of democracy through his developmental strides.”
Responding on behalf of the new chairmen, the ALGON chairman and Chairman of Esan Central Local Government Area, Kelvin Iyere, thanked the governor and APC members for accepting them into the party.
He stated: “We decided to decamp from PDP because of the crisis in our party and our love for the development that Governor Okpebholo has brought to Edo State.”
Okpebholo also expressed support for President Bola Tinubu, emphasisng that the APC was poised to secure a re-election victory in 2027.
However, Publicity Secretary of the PDP Caretaker Committee in Edo State, Chris Nehikhare, accused Okpebholo of using state resources to bribe councillors into defecting to the APC.
He said: “Senator Monday Okpebholo has summoned all councillors from the 18 local councils of Edo State, in a desperate attempt to woo them with N2m each to decamp to the All Progressives Congress.”
He described the use of state funds to buy political loyalty as “reckless” and “unacceptable.”
“We condemn in the strongest terms the reckless use of state resources to purchase support and loyalty, while critical sectors of the state remain in dire need of government intervention, from security to public safety and order, revenue generation, education, and healthcare, among others,” Nehikhare said.
He urged Okpebholo to redirect resources toward addressing the state’s pressing issues, such as security, education, healthcare, and public safety, rather than using them for political gains.
“Rather than wasting resources on buying political support and loyalty, we urge him to channel these resources into meaningful projects that will positively impact the people of the State during his short period at Dennis Osadebe Avenue,” he said.
A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, an Accord Party aspirant and about 3,000 other politicians have defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
Among the defectors was Ademola, popularly known as Lucky, who said his decision to leave the PDP followed a careful assessment of the state’s political landscape and the prospects of the parties ahead of the next general election.
Speaking during the defection ceremony, Ademola described the APC as the party with the strongest political prospects in Oyo State.
“I did my due diligence and realised that any ticket outside the APC is a mere tissue paper that cannot take a candidate anywhere in 2027.
“We are here in our hundreds to formally join the APC, and we promise to do our best in the interest of the progressive party and our dear country, Nigeria,” he said.
Also joining the APC was Ojo, who had been seeking the Accord Party’s ticket in the same constituency.
Ojo said his decision to abandon Accord followed what he described as unsuccessful efforts to establish the party as a credible political alternative in the state.
According to him, the group had invested considerable time, energy and resources in the party before concluding that joining the APC offered a more promising political platform.
“We thought about making Accord a credible alternative in the state, but we later realised that the APC was far ahead of other parties.
“We wasted our time, energy and resources on an unproductive exercise. We later realised it wasn’t worth it, so we decided to pitch our tent with the progressive party,” Ojo said.
The defectors were formally received by the Oyo State APC Chairman, Chief Moses Alake-Adeyemo, who assured them of equal opportunities and fair treatment within the party.
The ceremony was attended by the APC deputy governorship candidate, Adesoji Adedeji, the party’s Oyo South Senatorial candidate, Aderemi Oseni, and other prominent party leaders.
The mass defection comes as political parties intensify efforts to strengthen their structures and build support ahead of the 2027 elections in Oyo State.
Ademola popularly known as Lucky, said his decision to leave the PDP was influenced by his assessment of the political situation in the state ahead of the 2027 elections.
“I did my due diligence and realised that any ticket outside the APC is a mere tissue paper that cannot take a candidate anywhere in 2027.
We are here in our hundreds to formally join the APC, and we promise to do our best in the interest of the progressive party and our dear country, Nigeria,” Ademola said.
Ojo, who was seeking the Accord ticket in the same constituency, also announced his decision to join the APC, describing his previous political efforts with Accord as unproductive.
We thought about making Accord a credible alternative in the state, but we later realised that the APC was far ahead of other parties.
“We wasted our time, energy and resources on an unproductive exercise. We later realised it wasn’t worth it, so we decided to pitch our tent with the progressive party,” Ojo said.
The defectors were received by the Oyo State Chairman of the APC, Chief Moses Alake-Adeyemo, who assured them that they would have equal opportunities within the party.
We thought about making Accord a credible alternative in the state, but we later realised that the APC was far ahead of other parties.
“We wasted our time, energy and resources on an unproductive exercise. We later realised it wasn’t worth it, so we decided to pitch our tent with the progressive party,” Ojo said.
The defectors were received by the Oyo State Chairman of the APC, Chief Moses Alake-Adeyemo, who assured them that they would have equal opportunities within the party.
The event was attended by the APC deputy governorship candidate, Adesoji Adedeji, the party’s Oyo South Senatorial candidate, Aderemi Oseni and other party leaders.
The Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation has described the Oyo State Governor and Allied Peoples Movement (APM) Presidential Candidate, Seyi Makinde, as clueless and a total embarrassment to the people of the State, saying “for failing to address hunger in Oyo State despite increased funds from the federation account, Makinde has shown that he is more than clueless.”
The Campaign Organisation, in a statement by Bisi Oladele, Director of Media and Publicity, said Governor Makinde’s admittance of more money from the federation account to Oyo State was a confirmation of the success of the economic reform policies of the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Makinde had admitted in Lafia, Nasarawa State on Monday, that Oyo State received more money from the federation account, but added that he has not been able to reduce hunger in the State.
The Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation, in a statement on Tuesday, said Makinde’s statement, though a function of his level of intellectual capacity, is a sad and clear reality of what Oyo State has been going through in terms of purposeful governance in the last seven years.
If through the ingenuity and purposeful leadership of President Tinubu, Oyo State allocation from the federation account has increased tremendously, should it also be the duty of the President to ensure judicious use of the money?
If you have acknowledged that monthly, you have been getting more money from the federation account, who are you expecting to come and help you to fight hunger in your State? Is it President Tinubu?
Most importantly, this same Governor Makinde has deliberately refused to allow local governments in Oyo State to function. He has criminally been everywhere, opposing local government autonomy so as to continue to spend both the State and local council funds.
Therefore, for the people of Oyo State, waiting a day longer to stop the extension of Makinde’s cluelessness beyond 2027 is what must not be allowed to happen and on February 6, 2027, the governor and the man through whom he desires to extend his clueless government will be rejected by the people.
Bisi Oladele
Director, Media and Publicity
Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation
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