• We’ll support whoever emerges, say aspirants
• Students rally support for Akingboye
• Arebuwa vows to liberate state from APC
Ahead of the November 2024 governorship election in Ondo State, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state has said that the possibility of having a consensus candidate as the standard-bearer of the party is being explored.
The party, which said that it would ensure a hitch-free primary scheduled for April 25, 2024, held a meeting with no fewer than eight aspirants at the party’s secretariat in Alagbaka, Akure, where the consensus option was deliberated.
According to the Publicity Secretary of the party, Kennedy Peretei, if the consensus plan fails to materialise, the party will be left with no option but to organise a free, fair and transparent primary.
The aspirants, who attended the interactive session, include Agboola Ajayi, Bamidele Akingboye, Sola Ebiseni, Adeolu Akinwunmi, Abayomi Sheba, Bosun Arebuwa and John Ola Mafo.
Ebiseni, who spoke after the meeting, said that the aspirant that would fly the flag of the PDP at the polls would be determined by the party and accepted by party members, as well as people of the state.
On his part, Ajayi said that the guidelines of the party would be duly considered in the emergence of the candidate. For Akingboye, he said: “All the aspirants have all agreed to come together to work as one.”
Meanwhile, the Coordinator, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), South-West, Zone D, John Alao, has urged the party to field a candidate that would be acceptable to all and sundry and someone who is equipped with the solution to the challenges bedevilling the state.
Alao said that after scrutinising the aspirants by his fellow students, they would be pitching their tent with Akingboye as the best among the hopefuls.
However, Arebuwa has vowed to liberate the state from what he described as seven years of appalling misrule under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state.
Arebuwa, who faulted the APC-led government for the alleged deteriorating state of affairs in the state, spoke with newsmen in Akure, the state capital. He pledged his commitment to restoring good governance, improving infrastructure, enhancing the health sector, and boosting the state’s economy if elected as governor.
