Ayu: Oyo PDP tells Makinde to retract statement at a group meeting in Rivers

From Taiwo Oluwadare, Ibadan

According to the stakeholders, they were really surprised at the statement made by the state governor who constituted himself into thinking, deciding and mouthpiece of the entire members and stakeholders of Oyo State political party.

In a statement made available to Daily Sun and signed by Hon. Yemi Agboola, the group said: “To start with, Oyo state does not have party executive, which is attested to by the Court of Law. There is therefore, no Oyo State PDP Executive or membership decision that called for resignation of Dr. Iyorchia Ayu or his removal from office as the National Chairman of the party.

“Secondly, there was /is no decision by Oyo State PDP that Gov. Makinde should speak on behalf of the state PDP, in a call for resignation or removal of Dr. Ayu from office, neither at the Gov. Makinde’s arranged forum of Wednesday, September 14, 2023, in Ibadan or the most recent group meeting in Rivers state.

“Engr. Seyi Makinde joined PDP just about four years ago, and the fact that the loyal and dedicated members, leaders and stakeholders of the party in Oyo state had endured all the recklessness and atrocious actions of Seyi Makinde does not mean that such people should continue to treat all those he met in the party as filths or outcasts in the party that thought Seyi Makinde should be supported, by all and sundry, especially, the older and elderly members of PDP that he met in the party.

“The fact that Engr. Seyi Makinde has consistently introduced despicable activities into PDP does not mean he is now self-made emperor that must continue to put the party to disaffection within the party and beyond the party.

“The genuine members of party candidly appreciated the coalitions that led to Engr. Seyi Makinde as Oyo state governor but all his unrestrained misbehaviours and anti-party demeanour erroneously set an agenda that makes him believe he is God. But that is not true. He is simply a man that received several goodwills that he repaid with countless ingratitude. Political bullying, such as political violence, civil unrest, unconcerned and unquestioned maiming and killings in the state, giving political handouts to anyone of his choice does not mean that this is supported by members and leaders of the party, but just a means of maintaining peace against all odds in the state.

“Having set out the preambles of how Engr. Seyi Makinde, who had colossally failed at several attempts to win governorship position until he joined PDP, but destroyed same PDP in Oyo state, it is now important to seriously resist his selfish motive and interest in now wanting to misrepresent Oyo state, after his shameful failure in misrepresenting South West PDP, at his shoddily organised show of shame in Ibadan, Oyo state.

“For the sake of authentic information, the South West Zone PDP held series of meetings, to welcome HE Atiku Abubakar to South West, so that he could freely interact with all the stakeholders of the zone, in considerations that some issues are peculiar to various geo-political zones /states / communities, in addition to common federal problems. Barely 48 hours to the organised peoples’ event, put together for weeks by PDP Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states, Mr. Oyo state governor hijacked an event that could have made thousands to present diverse issues of concerns, only for him to just say Ayu must go.

“Gov. Makinde was informed by HE Atiku Abubakar what he has not learned in his almost four-year rentage and tenancy in PDP that a constitutional decision cannot be upturned by individual or group’s agitations.

“Nigeria is a country of hundreds of tribal-ethnicities, and a nation with flourishing inter-tribal marriages. But the fact that Engr. Makinde is an in law to his friend in Rivers state makes it very unfair to repeatedly malign the South West and Oyo state. The South West / Yoruba are synonymous with OMOLUABI, i.e., well-behaved, which Gov. Makinde has not presented us to be.

“HE Atiku was allowed to come to Ibadan, and his courtesy visit to His Imperial Majesty, Oba Olubadan was cancelled, likewise, his visits to some party leaders.

“HE Atiku Abubakar was requested by Gov. Makinde to commission a project on Thursday, September 15, 2022, in Ibadan but Mr. Governor then invited Ekiti state governor to commission the said project. That is an unpardonable insult but as a Unifier, HE Atiku still took such ill-action silently. But this is not how we behave in karo o jire land at all.

“Gov. Fayemi is of APC. It then means that apart from Atiku, there is no PDP Governor is worthy of commissioning his project? Is it therefore, farfetched that the call for resignation has bigger hidden agenda to destabilise PDP at a particular moment, especially, considering the series of foreign meetings with other parties? Meanwhile, this is the same governor whose Deputy Governor was supposedly impeached for “anti-party activities”?

“PDP is a party that ‘believes and understands the importance of building bridges of peace, love and understanding between the North and the South and ensuring fairness, justice and equity for all’. That is the major reason that genuine party members, who wants the party still together have been quiet. However, it is important to highlight that PDP follows rules and regulations, including those affecting the constitution of the party.

“PDP, as a party with required morals and decency consider it immoral to call for resignation of a national Chairman, simply based on a “discussion” that we were not part of and which if indeed decided, were non-constitutional decision. Howbeit, we will not be surprised if allegations are raised against the National Chairman, just to make him leave the office. It is not only that same people will campaign against the party that its Chairmen are always sent packing but the more the call for resignation, the stronger the suspicion that there are some likely dangerous moves against the party in near future.

“In conclusion, the Oyo state PDP never at any state forum, called for unconstitutional resignation or removal of the National Chairman, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu at this critical period of few months to elections. It is illogical that such call, which was not made at the Presidential primaries of the party is now the only point of destabilising the smooth planning towards the forthcoming general elections.

“We therefore, owe it as a sense of responsibility, to demand that Gov. Seyi Makinde withdraws his statement at his group meeting, which was held in Rivers State, as such statement does not represent Oyo state PDP”, the statement reads.