…Fayose rallies South-West leaders for unity
By Remi Adefulu
former governor of Oyo State, Senator Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, has joined the for chairmanship seat of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), ahead of its December national convention.
He made this known at a recent Lagos meeting convened by Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State to agree on candidate for the chairmanship position for the party for the region before the convention.
Ladoja told journalists that he is already holding consultations among stakeholders in the party before a formal announcement. He disclosed that he would publicly declare his chairmanship ambition before the end of the week. According to him, having formally obtained the PDP membership card, he had ceased to be a member of the Accord Party.
This is even as Fayose held a closed-door meeting with PDP chairmanship aspirants on the platform of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), including former deputy national chairman of the party, Chief Olabode George; Ladoja; former National Vice Chairman Chairman, South-West, Alhaji Tajudeen Oladipo and former Minister of Information, Chief Dapo Sarumi. Former Ogun State governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, who was absent was said to have sent an apology. The meeting commenced around 9pm and ended around 10pm.
Fayose said the meeting was called to let the PDP South-West go into the convention as a united and indivisible entity as it could not afford to go into the exercise as a divided entity: “The zone needed to do this to be able to produce the best candidate because going there without cohesion would not speak well of the Soth West zone.”
He said those at the meeting agreed that it should be an ongoing exercise and an all-inclusive one where all stakeholders would be invited.
Oladipo described Fayose as the rallying point for the party in South-West being the only PDP governor and the chairman, PDP Governors’ Forum:
“He is a rallying point to make our position in the South West PDP known in the coming convention. We endorse the calling of the meeting with all stakeholders in attendance before the convention. It is our privilege to have him as our governor and other stakeholders would be joining us before the convention.”
George: “I also endorse the meeting and it shows that all hope is not lost.” He said it should be clear that the South-Wet PDP was not a rudderless ship, expressing the belief that at the end of the day, the intervention by Fayose would be a welcome development that would gladden the hearts of members.