Oyo PDP leaders dissociate selves from Makinde over Atiku

Some leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo State, yesterday, declared their support for the presidential candidate of the party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

They said Governor Seyi Makinde was only speaking for himself by allegedly declaring support for presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Makinde, had on Saturday during a live radio programme, said that himself and other aggrieved PDP governors would not work for the presidential candidate of the party for some reasons.

He said a northerner could not complete eight years’ tenure and also return power to the North for Atiku to take over.

He also argued that the National Chairman of the party, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, could not come from the North and the presidential candidate also emerging from the North.

BUT a former Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Wole Oyelese, who spoke at an emergency meeting of leaders of the party from the 33 local councils of the state, said Makinde was not speaking for the party in the state but for himself.

He said the PDP leaders would work and deliver the state for Atiku in 2023.

“A good politician would not speak like that. For Makinde to say he would not work for Atiku doesn’t mean anything. He is on his own! It is an empty threat! If he says we should not vote for Atiku, who are we voting for? We are too sophisticated for that in Oyo State. Makinde is a new comer in Oyo State politics but we shall continue to work for our party.

“However, we are working for Atiku in a special way. My advice for any politician who wants to win in Oyo State is to come to the mainstream. Mainstream is the leadership of the party in the state,” he said.

ALSO, a foremost party leader, Femi Babalola, said the governor was guilty of the points he raised against Atiku.

Babalola said: “He that comes to equity, must come with clean hands. The first question I asked myself was that is it good for a northerner to take over from a northerner? And another question is that is it good for an Ibadan man to take over from Ibadan man that spent eight years? So, for Makinde that benefited from such, why is he now antagonising another person? He didn’t see anything wrong in that but when it is Atiku’s turn, it is wrong.”