Ladoja denies interest in Oyo 2019 governorship

Former Oyo State governor and chieftain of Accord Party (AP), Senator Rasheed Ladoja has denied having any ambition to contest the 2019 gubernatorial election in the state.

Ladoja, who has been rumoured to be preparing to checkmate incumbent governor, Abiola Ajimobi in the choice of successor to the latter, said he was only concerned about building his party to make it national in outlook.

Speaking with The Guardian during the weekend in Ibadan, Ladoja said, “I am not interested in 2019 governorship election at the moment. It is either you deliberately want to incite me or the person who floated the rumour is just plain stupid.

“If anybody wants to contest for governorship in my party in the election, they have to sell themselves to the people and if the people accept the person, all well and good.

“At the moment, I am trying to see how we can build a party with national outlook, and not a sectional party, which is the level that a lot of party operates at the moment.

“The governor has said that he has identified five people that can succeed him, so why are people talking about me? The 2019 election does not interest me now.”Ajimobi had said he identified five individuals who may succeed him when he leaves office in two years time. The governor, in a recent pronouncement, has also shown preference for an Oke-Ogun aspirant to occupy the Government House in 2019, a development that the rumour mill said Ladoja was not happy about.

In a recent public outing in the area, Ajimobi said, “I cannot thank you enough. I will forever cherish my people from Oke Ogun. I assure you that I will reciprocate your love for me. Without prejudice to the competence and legitimacy of aspirants from other zones nursing the ambition of succeeding me, I can say the people of Oke Ogun deserve my support.”