ondo:oke is leaving APC to run as AD governor's candidate

A governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State, Chief Olusola Oke, on Saturday, dumped the party for the Alliance for Democracy (AD).

Oke's declaration laid to rest speculations that the former Legal Adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and governorship candidate of the party in 2012 was planning to dump APC for another party to realise his governorship ambition.

Speaking with his supporters across the 18 local government areas in the state, in his residence, Oke stated that his defection was necessitated by the injustice perpetrated by some leaders of the party in the primary election of the party.

He explained that he waited patiently for the leaders to correct the injustice before opting out of the party.

Oke, who said he took the decision to dump the party after due consultations with some APC leaders and supporters across the country, disclosed that he would contest the November 26 governorship election on the platform of the AD.

He said he was contesting for the governorship seat in the forthcoming election to rescue the people of Ondo State from underdevelopment, describing the AD as home of the progressives.

Oke noted that the PDP in the state "has been celebrating the decision of the APC to field Rotimi Akeredolu as the party's candidate in the election."

He said: "I was the first person to raise the alarm over the giant fraud in that primary. I was later vindicated by the appeal committee, which ruled that the primary be cancelled and that a new primary be conducted where a popular candidate will emerge.

"But Oyegun and his cabal proceeded to submit that name to the INEC, thereby killing the dream and vision of Ondo State people in APC to have a true change they have been yearning for.

"I confess to you that the dreams of the founders of APC is good and laudable. The philosophy behind APC is good, but unfortunately, some set of opinionated cabal hijacked the soul of the party at the national level."

"They have enthroned injustice over justice, Inequality over equity, unfairness over fairness, and therefore they made it impossible for true change to be actualised this time on the platform of APC.

"I stand on the side of the people of Ondo state, I represent their dreams and vision for a new order in ondo state I am a compatriot who believe that we must not allow the status quo to prevail.

"The status quo in Ondo state is anti People and it has reduced the liberty of the citizens. All those virtues we used to cherish in Ondo state, the virtues of liberty, dignity, pride, integrity have all gone down because of orchestrated poverty.

"We cannot longer tolerate a situation where government had no dream, no direction, vision and the people are made to wallow in abject poverty. It is to reverse this situation that we have everything to APC to have a platform where truth will prevail and unfortunately the National Chairman killed the dream."

He however promises to continue to relate with some leaders of APC who toll line of justice during the crisis in the party in Ondo state.

However, it was gathered that the National leadership of the AD has formally written to the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) seeking for the substitution of its candidate for the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

The party demanded that the name of the party's candidate, Dr. Akin Olowookere, be substituted with Oke for the governorship election.

INEC had last Thursday released the list of candidates for the governorship election in the state.