Some groups within the Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Oyo State, have revealed that they absented themselves from Saturday’s first reconciliation meeting called by the chairman of the committee, former governor Adebayo Alao-Akala because it was populated by members of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
FreshPage gathered that stakeholders converged at Alao-Alaka’s residence yesterday. At the meeting, several members of the party bore their grievances and gave recommendations for the party to be united.
They traced the origin of their grievances with the party to unfair congresses and primaries and poor reward system.
While asking the reconciliation committee to look into these grievances, they, however, expressed commitment to downplaying their misgivings and personal ambitions in the interest of forging a united and strong APC in the state.
Various speakers also persuaded one another to collapse the various sub or splinter groups into one Oyo APC, adding that the reconciliation must be all-accommodating not belittling any member of the party.
But top members of the party like Iyiola Oladokun, Sunday Dare, Moses-Alake-Adeyemo, Adebayo Shittu, Adeolu Akande, Yunus Akintunde, Fatai Ibikunle, Bayo Adewusi, Adesoji Akanbi, Ayo Adeseun, Adedapo Lam-Adesina, Abiodun Olasupo, Taiwo Michael Akintola, Sunbo Olugbemi, Sunday Adepoju, Akeem Agbaje, Ayodeji Kareem, Isiaka Alimi, Ajiboye Omodewu, Goke Oyetunji and host of others were not present at the meeting.
Alao-Akala, explaining the absence of the top members of the party, assured of persuading more members to attend subsequent stakeholders’ meetings.
He pointed out that subsequent meetings will be expanded to accommodate a lot of former political office occupants as well as two representatives each from all local government areas in the state.
Before Saturday’s meeting, youth and sports development minister, Dare, had convened a meeting inside the premises of the University of Ibadan on Friday. But late former governor Abiola Ajimobi’s deputy, Alake-Adeyemo and Adeseun, who were at Friday night’s meeting were conspicuously absent from Alao-Akala’s meeting.
Other who attended Dare’s meeting included members of the house of representatives, Honourables Shina Peller, Musiliu Akinremi, Akeem Adeyemi, Olumide Ojerinde, Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN), former speakers of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Asimiyu Alarape, Olagunju Ojo, Ayodeji Aleshinloye, ALGON chairman, Dibu Ojerinde among others. They also attended Alao-Akala’s meeting.
Also at Alao-Akala’s meeting were Bayo Adelabu, Joseph Tegbe, Olusola Ayandele, Azeez Adeduntan, Niyi Akintola and Owolabi Babalola, Fatai Buhari, Teslim Folarin among others.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, some of them who didn’t want name in print said apart from the fact that the committee was not fairly constituted, it was dominated by former members of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
“The composition is unfair from the beginning. Some of those who got us in this mess are in the committee. Then, how do you achieve unity? We say we want to dislodge the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and they want to lead APC with PDP members, it is not done. It is a planned work, to allow Governor Seyi Makinde to use two terms. They want to deny the people of Oyo State the opportunity of progressive governance. The issue that led us into this quagmire has not been addressed,” the source said.
Asked what their next line of action would be, the source added that they remain members of the party and would do everything possible to resist “attempt to takeover our party by the ruling party. With due respect, former governor Adebayo Alao-Akala has left our party in September 2018 for the Action Democratic Party, ADP. And he has returned. When he formed an alliance with our party in the build up to the 2019 governorship election, he did say he was still in ADP. When he now rejoined APC is what we don’t know. We may be forced to take legal action.”
