• Absolves Akeredolu of wrongdoing
• Aiyedatiwa didn’t influence judgment, says LACO-FSIC
The candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the forthcoming governorship election in Ondo State, Agboola Ajayi, has berated Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa over his action towards the court judgment scrapping the 33 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) created by the late Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.
Ajayi, who emphasised that he blamed Aiyedatiwa for the manner in which he handled the issues generated by the creation of the LCDAs as well as the court processes, said that with the scrapping of the new councils, the hopes of the people had been dashed.
He said that Aiyedatiwa should have employed a political solution to ensure a win-win solution to the issue. Ajayi, who condemned the court judgment, in a statement, yesterday, described it as anti-people, which would hinder development of Ondo communities. He said: “The judgment is anti-people. It will be promoting an agenda that will hinder rapid development of the communities. The Ondo State government is behind the suit. They must appeal the judgment. The suit filed by the PDP was not to abrogate the LCDAs but to condemn the illegal inauguration of caretaker chairman.”
The PDP’ candidate, while absolving the late Akeredolu of any wrongdoing in the creation of the LCDAs, maintained that the people of Akoko have the right to kick and protest against the alleged marginalisation.
He said: “Government is a serious business. Once you inherit an asset from the government, you must also inherit the liability of whatever it is from that government.”
Ajayi, however, vowed to come up with policies and programmes aimed at developing the people of the grassroots, which the creation of LCDAs would be part of if elected as the governor.
MEANWHILE, the Lucky Aiyedatiwa Campaign Organisation Foot-Soldiers Independent Council (LACO-FSIC), in a statement, yesterday, by its Spokesman, Kayode Fasua, said that the governor was not behind the judgment.
“Ajayi’s statement was reckless, defamatory, and an attempt to bring the judiciary to ridicule.
“While Agboola Ajayi has every right to express his opinion on a court verdict, he is not licensed to impugn on the integrity of the sitting judge and the judicial institution by claiming that Aiyedatiwa had influenced the judge to pass his judgment,” the statement stated.
