The rank of the PDP got swelled on Thursday when former Oyo State Governor, Rasheed Ladoja, who defected to the Accord Party to contest the state’s governorship seat in the 2015 general elections, returned to the party along with Seyi Makinde, a prominent Oyo politician and other key political players in the state. AGBOOLA BAYO writes
coming to PDP, Ladoja and his people are coming. My colleagues in Accord, they are here, some members of Oyo State House of Assembly are here, have I spoken. We won 8 seats in the state assembly. Th at shows how strong we are. I can say within the next two days, even next two hours, we can say come and raise our hands”, Ladoja said. Why we left PDP He informed Senator Makarfi and his team that “something pushed us out of PDP, we did not want to leave PDP at the time we left, though we suff ered. We wanted to stay on with PDP, maybe we failed to manage our success. If we look back, it was only the PDP that was in power when PDP governors were impeached wrongly.” stating that the PDP governors that were impeached are Ayo Fayose in Ekiti State, Chris Ngige in Anambra State , Joshua Dariye in Plateau State and Diepreye Alamieyeseigha in Bayelsa State.
“So, what is the essence of being in a group when you are not getting the protection of that group? Oyo state Chairman of Accord is there. All members of the executive of Accord are here, even the national executive of Accord is here. So, we do not take it lightly. We want to get that assurance that we will be equal in the party, which all the years we have been out will count for us.” He stressed “we should not look at it that Ladoja is coming to PDP. We should look at it that Ladoja and people, who have faith in him by going with him in Accord are coming to PDP. If the terms are right, and the terms being right is just a quality for everybody. So, I’m not asking for any special thing, it’s just I want to be considered as equal in the picture if you come.So, once we get those assurances, we’ll sit down in our caucus and I can assure you that within the next few days, or even the next few hours, we will come and raise our hands up that the people have come back to claim their rights in their party.” Responding, Makarfi assured the leader and his supporters that PDP under his leadership was committed to creating level playing fi eld for all members, be the returnees or not and that there would be amendment to the party’s constitution during the elective convention of the party slated for December. New Mission Senator Makarfi disclosed that registration log would be opened soon for all members of the party, including Ladoja receiving Senator Ahmed Makarfi and his team to his residence in Ibadan The rank of the PDP got swelled on Thursday when former Oyo State Governor, Rasheed Ladoja, who defected to the Accord Party to contest the state’s governorship seat in the 2015 general elections, returned to the party along with Seyi Makinde, a prominent Oyo politician and other key political players in the state. AGBOOLA BAYO writes PDP:
The return of Ladoja, Akala, others Background High Chief Rashidi Ladoja, along with Seyi Makinde, a chieftain of the Social Democratic Party(SDP) in Oyo state, returned to the PDP on Th ursday in Ibadan, capital of Oyo state, when Senator Ahmed Makarfi , chairman of the PDP National Caretaker Committee, came calling in continuation of his reconciliation mission. Th e overture by Makarfi according to pundits is targeting the 2019 general elections power tussle. Th e PDP reconciliation machine is also reaching out to key political players in the state, like former Governor, Otunba Adebayo Alao Akala, among others.
Th e ex-national leader of the Accord Party, (AP) Ladoja and his loyalists are back in the PDP under which he was elected as the governor, following the August 24,parley between him and the PDP NWC members led by Makarfi , leaving the party vibrant once again, based on their political trust and relevance. Ladoja, no doubt is an household name in the Oyo state politics and the entire Yoruba speaking states as clearly manifested in his Accord party’s roll in 2011 in Oyo state when his party entered into alliance with the then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) to form the needed majority in the Oyo state House of Assembly to stabilise Governor Abiola Ajimobi’s government in the early part of this administration. Prior to the 2011 general elections, Chief Ladoja left the ruling PDP then for the Accord party and with his coming to Accord few months to the elections, he was able to prove his political relevance by winning seats at the state House of Assembly and the House of Representatives . 2019 Scramble With all these and others to his credit in the political arena, the former governor has turned to be the favourite of political parties seeking to woo him into their side and the PDP was not left out of the scramble to win Chief Ladoja to their camp as the 2019 general elections are fast approaching To achieve this, Makarfi stormed the Ondo Street Bodija residence of Chief Ladoja, to look into the possibility of bringing him and his teeming supporters back to the PDP for the 2019 general elections and as a way of building a more vibrant and formidable PDP capable of facing the challenges ahead of the party . Ladoja, while receiving Makarfi and his team to his house minced no words in expressing his fears about returning to the PDP without some conditions being met and perfected for his fi nal decision to team up with the PDP insisting that there must be a level playing ground for him and his men, equal opportunity and equal right as the only condition for him and his people to rejoin PDP. . “I don’t want to leave PDP. We were forced to leave PDP. Myself, Ngige, Fayose. Mr Chairman, what is the terms. If the terms are right and the term is that equality of everybody. Ladoja is not returnees and that after the registration, the congresses of the party would be held, saying, “we have put things on hold in Oyo in order to integrate right from beginning. So, let’s start together, let’s start altogether as one family. So, everything we’ll develop, we are going to develop it together. Also, it is important for your people to hear, but it is also important they hear from us.” Senator Makarfi and his team also visited the Bodija residence of another former governor of the state, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala who was out of the country but were received by supporters of the former governor led by Chief Wale Ohu Th e PDP reconciliation team also visited the Social Democratic Party (SDP) governorship candidate in the 2015 general elections, Engineer Seyi Makinde, to also woo him and his supporters back to the party having departed PDP at the wake of the party’s governorship primary election which produced the former Senate leader, Senator Teslim Folarin as the PDP governorship candidate. Makinde Makinde, while welcoming Makarfi and his team Makinde told them that he left PDP in 2015 because the national leadership of the party then did not create a level playing fi eld for all the gubernatorial aspirants, and that he and his followers would return to PDP if the chairman could guarantee him that there would be internal democracy within the party, saying, “I’ve been part of the reconciliation process by Prof Gana. We’ve been consulting, talking. I joined PDP in 2002. I worked for Sen. Ladoja then, he won. I singlehandedly fi nanced the PDP in Oyo South till 2007. I left when things got worse.” With the fi llers from the political circles in Ibadan and other parts of the state, there are strong indications that Ladoja and his political associates in the Accord party could best be said to be almost in the PDP should the ongoing truce within the two parties is positively concluded without no last minute hitch . Scheming Th e seemingly likely treat to the ongoing political arrangement in Oyo state might be the issue of who control the party in the state which has been a major deciding factor in Oyo state from the days of Late Chief Lamidi Adedibu. To many political observers in the state, this factor if not carefully manage could at the end thwart the peace move by the PDP leaders. Some of the political observers are of the view that Ladoja may not likely wish to work with Otunba Akala who is also a strong force to reckon witjh when it comes into the issue of elections especially in his Ogbomoso country home and in the Oke Ogun area of the state. Th ough the PDP team has left Ibadan for Abuja, all eyes are now on what would be the outcome of the political move which if positive may likely turn the table in Oyo state as far as the 2019 general elections will be concerned.