Jegede gets Ondo State PDP candidacy

• Dickson, Mimiko positive of victory in November
• Jimoh Ibrahim’s legal challenge stalled

Former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Eyitayo Jegede, has emerged candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the forthcoming governorship election in Ondo State.

Jegede, at the International Event Centre, Akure, yesterday, defeated Mr. Saka Lawal to pick the ticket.

With voting ended by 11:37am and counting at 1:30am, Jegede was announced winner, polling 760 valid votes to defeat Lawal who had 22.

Lawal embraced the winner and declared he would not decamp from the party.

Meanwhile, failure to serve respondents with court processes has stalled the legal battle instituted by Jimoh Ibrahim against the Ahmed Makarfi faction of the PDP.

The suit was to get a court order stopping the executive committee of the faction from conducting a primary election to pick a candidate for the November 26 governorship poll.

In his acceptance speech, Jegede said: “There is no victor nor vanquished. We are all winners. This is purely a family matter within the PDP. We will continue to build friendship and bridges among our people.”

He also appreciated Lawal’s readiness to support him for the November poll, assuring him of a mutual working relationship, as they harness effort to revamp the economy of the state and build the party.

The chairman of the Electoral Committee and Bayelsa State governor, Seriake Dickson, urged party members to support the candidate for a consolidation of achievements by Governor Olusegun Mimiko.

According to Dickson, “The spirit behind this exercise is that, at the end, we want it said that our party and all of us have won. So, today, it is not for one person to win and another to lose. Today is for our party to win at the end of this exercise.”

Mimiko noted: “This is the beginning of our road to victory. In November, we will not only beat the All Progressives Congress (APC), but also beat them big in Ondo State. We want to, again, prove to Nigerians that the PDP is in charge in this state. And there is no question about the fact that we will produce the next governor.”