Ondo ACN: No longer at ease

L-R: Tinubu, Akeredolu and Akande
| credits: File copy

There are rumbles in the Ondo State chapter of Action Congress of Nigeria following the alleged imposition of Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu as the party’s candidate for the October 20 governorship election, reports SUNDAY ABORISADE

The Action Congress of Nigeria which has the highest number of notable politicians as governorship aspirants for the October 20 election in Ondo State, is in crisis following the failure of the national leadership of the party to convince other aspirants to accept the choice of a former President of the Nigeria Bar Association, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, as its candidate for the poll.

The grouse of the aggrieved aspirants was that the decision to zone the governorship ticket to the northern senatorial district of the state and later to Owo, which led to the choice of Akeredolu, was allegedly taken in Lagos by the national leadership of the party without an input from any politician from the state.

Shortly after the decision of the national leadership, the aspirants met in Akure on Saturday, June 23, and declared that the choice of Akeredolu violated all the democratic norms and would never be accepted by the people of the state.

Those who attended the meeting were aspirants from the northern senatorial district. They were: Dr. Tunji Abayomi, Dr. Olu Agunloye, Senator Ajayi Boroffice, Mr. Akinsehinwa Awodeyi, Mr. Segun Ojo, Mrs. Jumoke Anifowose — nee Ajasin, Chief Jamiu Ekungba, Mr. Festus Oluwole and Mr. Olayato Aribo. The duo of Messrs Segun Abraham and Jaiyeola Ajatta, were absent.

The aspirants wrote the National Secretariat of the party urging it to call on the National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and the Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande to set in motion an acceptable process of selecting a credible candidate who could win election for the party in the state.

They also issued a 10-point communiqué which detailed how they reviewed reports of individual meetings variously held with Tinubu over the choice of the party’s candidate.

The communique reads in part, “In view of the above and noting the essential character of our people and the regard for their right to choose their leaders as ordained by our laws and morals, we find the developments that led to the meeting of June 21, 2012, most discomforting in that we were told that our brother, Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN, has suddenly been selected as the candidate of ACN.

“The selection process of Mr. Akeredolu is faulty, wrong and offends democratic tradition in that neither Ondo State party leaders, officials, aspirants, or members, consented nor cooperated with the selection process of a candidate that is expected to represent them in a serious political contest.

“More disturbing is the reliable information that the selection process was unduly influenced by external forces.

“In view of the wrong process of selection, we reject and urge the party to reject Mr. Akeredolu as the candidate of ACN.

“In consequence, we call on the national leadership to respect fairness, the right of the people and order. In particular, the due process of selection established by law should be put in action.”

Although the aspirants pledged their commitment to the party and gave the assurance that they would remain in the ACN to salvage it together, indications have emerged that many of them may not work with Akeredolu in the forthcoming election.

Members of the Ondo State Coalition Group within the ACN mobilised to the party secretariat last Tuesday to protest the choice of Akeredolu and described his emergence as an “insult to party members in the state because the process that produced him did not follow an acceptable process.”

The Publicity Secretary of the state chapter of ACN, Mr. Rotimi Agbede, while addressing the group appealed to the 15 governorship aspirants from the North Senatorial District to support the candidature of Akeredolu.

Agbede said the emergence of Akeredolu as the choice of the party’s leadership to pick the ACN ticket for the October 20 governorship election was irreversible.

He said the national and the south-west leaders of the party had already introduced Akeredolu to the Central Working Committee and the executives of the party in the state, as the governorship candidate.

He said, “I think we should not do anything that would affect the chances of our party in the forthcoming governorship election. Our leaders have made the right choice and we need to support the candidate.”

One of the aspirants, Abayomi, the first to declare his ambition to contest the governorship election on the ticket of the party, told our correspondent that the grouse of his colleagues was not towards Akeredolu, but the process that led to his emergence.

The human rights activist said Akeredolu could not have emerged as candidate if due process based on the principles of fairness, equity, justice and morals had been adopted.

He added that there was an established hostility against Akeredolu even from his Owo community and that the fact that he is a newcomer to politics could work against the party.

He insisted that an aspirant from Akokoland should have been considered as the party’s candidate because it has four out of the six local government areas in the northern senatorial district with over 246,000 voters while Owo, where Akeredolu emerged from, could only boasts about 110,000 voters.

He said, “A candidate from Akoko would win overwhelmingly in the North and South senatorial districts and convincingly in the central zone where the Labour Party had concentrated development in the last three and half years.

“Most politicians in Owo are not favourably disposed to the candidature of Akeredolu, and his emergency had created a serious tension in the land because many people are disillusioned. The development is building hostilities towards the party. We have to do the right thing fast to douse the tension.”

A leader of the party who preferrede anonymity, alleged that the choice of Akeredolu was a unilateral decision of the party leaders.

He said, “If I was not consulted before the choice was made, then I can confirm to you that no Ondo born politician had an input. This is a slap in our face and it had confirmed the campaign slogan of the opposition that ours is a party of godfathers.”

The elderly politician however, said he had mobilised his people to reject any fake primaries that would be manipulated in favour of the already ‘chosen’ candidate.

Meanwhile, Akeredolu had said the screening that produced him as the preferred choice of the leaders was a first phase of the selection process and that every aspirant still had equal right to contest the party’s ticket during the party’s primaries which he hoped would be transparent and fair to all.

Unconfirmed reports available to our correspondent on Wednesday indicated that some of the aspirants might have technically resigned their membership of the party as only one of them attended a reconciliatory meeting called by the South-West leadership of the party to douse the growing tension.

However, a human rights activists, Mr. Kayode Ajulo, has said that the action of the national leadership of the party may lead to the emergence of two parallel candidates that would contest the election on the platform of the ACN.

Ajulo told our correspondent on the telephone that there was already a division within the party and that the elders of the ACN in the state might decide to take their destiny in their hands by producing a candidate through a transparent primaries.

He said, “You know an average Ondo man or woman has pride. They will not take this insult. Why should someone anoint a candidate in Lagos and send him to us as our new leader. No Ondo person will take that”

There are strong indications that the primaries of the party will be held in Akure in the next few weeks but whether the outcome, would be acceptable to the stakeholders, remains a big question in the light of current developments.