2022: Ogunbiyi Takes On Adeleke For PDP Gov. Ticket

 

• We Already Settled For Adeleke As Our Candidate – Bisi

By Ismaeel Uthman

POLITICAL activities have begun in earnest within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the State of Osun for the ticket of the party for the 2022 Gubernatorial Elections in the state.

While the PDP is yet to get through the controversies on its chairmanship position, a fresh political event that will further heighten the crisis in the party has unfolded.

Dr. Akin Ogunbiyi, the Chairman of Mutual Benefits Assurance, has revealed his interest in securing the ticket of the PDP for 2022 Osun Governorship Elections.

His declaration came at a time when the deal seemed to have been sealed for Senator Ademola Adeleke, the governorship candidate of the party in 2018, to have exclusive right to the ticket of the party to contest the 2022 elections.

The Chairman of the PDP, Mr. Sunday Bisi, in a short interview with OSUN DEFENDER yesterday, said the party had already settled for Adeleke as its candidate for the 2022 governorship election.

He said: “I have said it several times that Adeleke is our own candidate. I am not saying that anyone should not contest against him.

“As a party, we are not against anyone contesting. We are going to organise a primary election but like I said earlier, Adeleke is our own candidate. Quote me anywhere. I have said it on radio and television several times.”

But one of the apex members of the Ogunbiyi camp of the PDP, Mr. Emmanuel Monyeh, said they were optimistic that Ogunbiyi will win the governorship ticket against the wish of some people playing god in the party.

According to Monyeh, PDP will be doing itself a great favour by presenting another candidate outside Adeleke, saying that doing so will reduce the problem of the party during the elections.

Monyeh said: “It is a democratic world and a lot of things come to play. As it is today, I think Ogunbiyi is one of the very few credible aspirants we have in the PDP. We will do the best we can. If our people want to reduce the problems they are facing already, they should present somebody else.

“Osun deserves somebody that if is not even better than the incumbent, at least, he should be close to the incumbent to have a good fight. It is not only about winning elections. Ability to govern should be there.

“I believe in the cause because I am an educationist and I value education. I value competence beyond any other thing. Osun needs someone who is calm at this point when the economy is bad.”

Asked if not worried that Adeleke seems to have edge ahead of any other aspirants in the party, Monyeh said: “Visibly, the Adeleke camp could have an edge because you have to agree with the Nigeria reality and the reality is that we value money and most people with them are just looking for something to eat.

“You know we have been in opposition for over 10 years and boys have to survive. They will always say they belong to where they are seeing little money to maintain themselves. I don’t blame them too.

“I am a PDP person, no matter what happens. If the party eventually decides that Adeleke should run, I have no choice like the last time than to work for him, but I would have preferred an Ogunbiyi.”

Monyeh said the PDP chairman, Bisi does not have the capacity to declare that the party already has a candidate, saying ‘he is not the party.’

He spoke further: “There is a difference between adopting somebody that you feel has control on a party. But the party itself at the last count, I think we have between 130-140 thousand registered members.

“The total number of votes you will need to win in Osun is about 300,000 and above. So if you are going to talk of that, it means the party already has a shortfall of 160,000.

“If you are now thinking that the 130,000 that you are going to force a candidate upon would deliver the vote, you will succeed in delivering the candidate but you will not succeed in delivering the governor and that is the problem we are going to have.

“In a democracy, majority will always have its way while minority has its say. I’m avowed to my say that I need a competent person. I need somebody who has demonstrated the capacity to run a business.

“I believe in somebody who has demonstrated the ability to achieve what he is supposed to have achieved at particular ages. It is not somebody who is going to start celebrating a diploma certificate that my last son graduated with years ago.”