As the 2019 elections draw closer, the post-party primaries crisis of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) remain unresolved in most states, thereby putting the success of the party in next year’s election at risk.
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In Ondo state, aggrieved members of the party have resolved to support candidates of other parties in the state; opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Action Alliance (AA) in next year’s elections.
This decision has reportedly come about as a result of the leadership crisis in the APC which has resulted in massive defection of members to the PDP and the AA where some of them were offered tickets to contest for various positions.
Some of the defectors include former Senator Ayo Akinyelure, as well as senatorial aspirants of the APC, Dr. Tunji Abayomi and Dr. Olatunji Fedar.
Abayomi and Fedar were said to have dumped the APC when the National Working Committee of the party gave automatic senatorial tickets to the serving senators in the state.
According to the Punch Newspaper, some APC chieftains had started working for the PDP and AA’s candidates ahead the forthcoming elections.
According to a party source;
“Our members will not work for any APC candidates in the election, particularly Senators Ajayi Boroffice and Yele Omogunwa. We all know that the two senators are not loyal party members, so, let them go and work for themselves.
It was the injustice in the APC that pushed Abayomi and Fedar and some others out of the party. With that, how do you expect us to work for the APC candidates in the election? We will only work for President Buhari’s election and some of our loyal candidates. But our members who are now in AA, PDP and other parties will have our support.”
The Ondo State APC chairman however denied the reports saying no member of the party in the state will be involved in anti-party activities before or during next year’s elections.
However, the chairman of the APC in Ondo State, Mr Ade Adetimehin, said no member of the party could involve in anti-party activities before and during the forthcoming elections.
“There won’t be anti-party activities during the election, we have been appealing to our members to be united. The crisis is over and we are preparing for the election and I want to tell you that victory is ours,” he said.