Oyinlola, Oni’s defection to PDP won’t endanger South-West APC –Adetimehin
The Chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Ondo State, Mr Ade Adetimehin, has said the defection of a former Osun State Governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola; a former Ekiti State Governor, Chief Segun Oni; and other prominent politicians to the Peoples Democratic Party will not affect the fortunes of the APC in the region.
Adetimehin said this in an interview with our correspondent in Lagos on Friday.
He said despite the defection of these prominent politicians, the APC had continued to wax stronger, saying many prominent politicians in the PDP had also joined the APC, especially in Ondo State.
Adetimehin said he was confident that his party would win the next governorship election in the state, adding that prominent politicians from the PDP and other parties had been joining the ruling party to further strengthen it.
He said, “Politics is very dynamic and the situation is that as some are leaving, many are coming to join us. This is happening in all the states in the region and we are confident that more people will join the APC.
“Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola and Chief Segun Oni that you mentioned are leaders but other prominent leaders are also joining us and they are bringing their followers in tens of thousands. That these leaders joined the PDP does not pose a threat to the APC in the region.
“About two weeks ago, the founding chairman of the PDP, Col Samuel Awodeyi (retd), left the PDP and joined the APC and he came with a large number of his followers. Olabisi Johnson, a prominent leader of the PDP, also joined the APC.
“A former deputy governor of Ondo State, Alhaji Lasisi Oluboyo, and others also came to join the APC from Zenith Labour Party and we are expecting many more people to join us. Very soon, you will see the way they will start trooping to join our party.
“Our party is waxing stronger and if you look at other states in the region, you will see that the APC is waxing stronger there and I believe that Ondo State will remain an APC state after the coming governorship election.”
Adetimehin urged the people of Ondo State to keep supporting the governor, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, saying the governor had performed very well and would not stop to affect the lives of the people positively.
He said the kind of development being witnessed in the state was last seen during the tenure of the late Chief Adekunle Ajasin, who was governor between 1979 and 1983.