The National Chairman, South West Agenda For Asiwaju 2023 (SWAGA), Senator Dayo Adeyeye has expressed dissatisfaction with the manner the Ekiti state chapter of the All Progressives Congress(APC) conducted its ward congresses across last Saturday.
Adeyeye, a former Minister of State, Works stated this Sunday while addressing a press conference on the issue at Ado Ekiti.
He said: “The ward congresses purportedly took place in Ekiti state. But the manner of its conduct was nothing near all democratic norms as it was warped, disorderly, perverse and can only pass for a charade.
“We want to believe that the Caretaker/Extraordinary National Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), of our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), meant well when it gave the go ahead that ward congresses should hold across the country yesterday (Saturday).
“This was despite the fear earlier raised in some quarters on the legitimacy of such. The fear was triggered by the narrow-margined victory of the Ondo State governor, Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu, at the Supreme Court and pointers to the legality of the current party executives, to conduct a legally viable congress.
“We are hereby telling the CECPC, our party members nationwide and indeed, all Nigerians, that there was no congress in Ekiti State yesterday. What happened was a charade that cannot pass the test of democracy and it is totally unacceptable.”
” Prior to the congresses, the Tokan-Tokan, a group loyal to the State governor Kayode Fayemi, has constituted for themselves a 7-man electoral committee, with no input from many party stakeholders in the State. This is even as the CECPC had earlier advised that effort should be geared towards peaceful resolution of conflicts so that the APC could birth consensus delegates across board.
“You will recall that the Ekiti State Chairman of SWAGA, Senator Tony Adeniyi, had issued a release to the effect that while consensus delegates, as advised by the CECPC, was desirable, it would be impossible in Ekiti State because of the determination of the Tokan-Tokan group, to dominate and control the soul of the congresses. Senator Adeniyi warned that the unbridled actions of the group would have grave consequences. But the warning was ignored.
“Now the consequences of the arrogance and selfishness of the Tokan-Tokan group, to impose their favourites on members, stirs us in the face.
“As witnessed yesterday, the presence of INEC officials was not felt at the congresses. In most of the centres, members of the Tokan-Tokan group took over the INEC job. The presence of the law enforcement agents was also very insignificant. We witnessed a situation where people waited agitatedly from dusk to almost dawn, in a decoy deployed to frustrate voters.”
