The Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, on Tuesday disagreed with the state Governor, Seyi Makinde, over speculations that the governor was making moves to join the APC.
It berated Makinde, who became governor on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, for denying overtures he was making to join the APC.
The APC was responding to a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Makinde, Mr. Taiwo Adisa.
Adisa had accused the opposition party of trying to woo the governor into its fold after seeing his giant strides in administering Oyo State.
His statement read in part, “The APC was merely covetous of the great feats achieved by Makinde as governor of Oyo State. The plot to lure Makinde to the APC did not come as a surprise. One is not surprised that some elements in the APC are busy debating the possibility of Governor Makinde’s defection to the party.
“So, the best thing the APC could come up with right now is to imagine a Makinde as a standard-bearer so he could serve as a surreptitious redemption for the years of locust the party had inflicted on the people of Oyo State.”
But the APC, in a statement made available to newsmen by Olawale Sadare, Personal Assistant (Media), to the state APC Caretaker Committee Chairman, Chief Akin Oke, in Ibadan, on Tuesday, said Makinde was being economical with the truth.
He said, “Governor Makinde played the ostrich by denying apparent moves to join the APC through the back door. While we appreciate the fact that there is free entry and free exit in party politics, we are disappointed that a governor can turn a desperado in his bid to be an overlord in the entire political space in a state like Oyo.
“With what Governor Makinde has just done, genuine democrats and other stakeholders in the nation’s democratic environment have a good cause to renew their fear for the future of democracy and the rule of law.
“Available facts indicate that he (Makinde) had established contacts with a former governor from the Niger Delta region who now lives in Abuja.
“We must set the record straight that Oyo APC cannot consider him an asset or good addition for obvious reasons, with virtually all the gladiators involved in the unfortunate coalition arrangement which gave victory to the PDP in the 2019 gubernatorial election now in the APC after deserting him for tenable and justifiable reasons which revolve around insincerity, selfishness and undemocratic traits.
“The truth remains that Oyo APC would not need a character like Governor Makinde who still has a long way to go if he desires to emerge a strong, credible and popular political player during and after his four-year tenure.”
