Two lawmakers of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Gbenga Edema and Fola Olaseinde today officially dumped the Labour Party (LP) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressive Congress (APC).
While Edema dumped LP for APC, Olaseinde who had earlier joined PDP with other LP 22 legislators, has made a U-turn and also defected to the APC.
The defectors cited the factionalisation of their political parties as the reason for their action.
Addressing reporters after they made their intention known to leaders of the party, the lawmakers said LP’s platform could no longer be used as it has seized to exist following the defection of Governor Olusegun Mimiko to the PDP.
Edema who represents Ilaje constituency II said immediately after the defection of his colleagues in Assembly to PDP, all the tangible and physical structures of the LP have been extinguished saying the party secretariat along Ado-Owo road has been transformed into a secretariat of the faction of PDP in the state.
He also said that the local government and ward executive committee of the party had gone into extinction as all members have abdicated their positions having migrated to the PDP.
The former party executives, Edema said, have turned themselves to PDP registration officers in their various wards and local governments. This development, he said has obliterated LP structures in the state.
His words “faced with this state of helplessness, I considered the option of going to the PDP like my colleagues, but I soon discovered that the PDP in Ondo state is even more fragmented than LP.
“Apart from the presence of two party secretariats which is symptomatic of internal wrangling within the party, series of litigation, open condemnation in the media have now become the order of the day. Would it not be a situation of jumping from frying pan into fire?”
“Certainly, you would agree with me that it is going to be a herculean task for any LP member migrating into PDP to accomplish any success in the PDP, as it’s presently constituted. As a people, we wish to be part of the wind of change that will usher in a more progressive, purposeful, focused, transparent and responsive government in Abuja come 29th of May 2015.”
Olaseinde in her speech titled “my walk to freedom” said her colleagues marginalised her and suspended her over offence she knew nothing about. During her travails, she said her constituency was not represented, neither was she paid her entitlements as a member of the Assembly.
Receiving the new members into the party, the Chairman, Mr Isaacs Kekemeke said some lawmakers of the PDP were ready to join APC because they were dissatisfied with Mimiko’s joining their party.
Commenti