Oyo Guber Race: Mogaji Kayode Ogunsola Faults PDP Exclusion Process, Cites Blackmail

Reported by Ibadan Media

The Gubernatorial Aspirant of the People’s Democratic Party in Oyo, Mogaji Kayode Ogunsola, has condemned the exclusion of his name from the list of aspirants meant to participate in the party's primary in the state.

Ogunsola, who addressed the journalists in Ibadan this afternoon, noted that his exclusion was based essentially on blackmail by some other Aspirants at the State level.

According to him; "Firstly, I want to commend the Leadership of our Party, the PDP, on the tireless and excellent work that has been done in the processes, the communication, organisation, and mobilisation, nationwide of all the Party Primaries nnationwide. I have been through the process myself and honestly, it's commendable. A few snags here and there but we must give honour to those whom honour is due.

"I thank the Leadership, the Board of Trustees, Party Leaders nationwide for their dedication to the Party as we rebuild for the future."

While addressing the Mode of Election, he explained that; "In line with the Constitution and extant laws, rules and guidelines of the Federation, I believe INEC, as an electoral umpire, needs to be much more specific and prescriptive on how Party Primaries are conducted. The law currently prescribes two (2) modes for conducting Party Primaries
a - Consensus
b - Direct Primaries

"We have seen on social media how Direct Primaries have been conducted. We see how counting has been done. In many cases, accreditation is skipped. This isn't good for the system. It needs to be improved. I believe INEC can specify how verifiable Party Primaries should be conducted, from end to end. Also, I believe we should look to deploy simple technology for Party Primaries., We can do better and we must."

Stating the event that unfolded today, Mogaji Ogunsola, said, it is unfortunate that his name was excluded from the list of the Aspirants.

"I want to state for the benefit of our teeming Party Members that unfortunately, we were excluded from participating in this Gubernatorial Primary election. We have followed the process meticulously, met all requirements, so, surprisingly, we were excluded from the Primary. I think it is in the common interest of all Aspirants to ensure that we submit ourselves to an open, transparent and equitable process. Aspirants should seek to win Primaries as a true test of their acceptability.

"My exclusion was based essentially on blackmail by some other Aspirants at the state level. Aspirants including myself should endeavour to win Primaries on merit. We should let the Members decide. There is honestly no merit in winning a contest without credible contestants.

Finally, he advocates for a leader who can deliver for people and be able to provide some basic things that people need to survive.

"The end result of politics is governance. We need leaders who can deliver for the people. Our people need jobs, make a living wage, enjoy good healthcare and an improvement in living standards. That is what we at Óseése are committed to. We in the Óseése Movement will continue to work on the delivery of service that will be for the benefit of the good people of Oyo State", he concluded.