13th May, 2021
The Ogun Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has vowed that it will claim all the 20 local governments in the July 24 elections in the state.
PDP said it is prepared and determined to give the ruling party a run for its money while adding that the state is not secure under the watch of ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Akinloye Bankole, the Ogun PDP Publicity Secretary, in Abeokuta, said that efforts were on top gear to ensure the party wins all positions in the election.
Bankole said the sale of nomination forms started on May 10, adding that it would be on till May 17.
“We are fully prepared for the election. We are educating and sensitizing the people to vote PDP, so that life can be returned to our local governments. As you know, local government administrations are a strategic point of governance in Nigeria, being the third tier of government and the closest to the people,” he said.
Bankole who explained that aspirants were already picking up nomination forms, said that the performance of the ruling APC in Ogun and Nigeria, in general, has shown that the PDP is a better alternative.
“Going by all realistic indices, we have a very bright chance and we want to leverage on that to make sure we present candidates that can mobilize votes for us.
“If you look at Nigeria presently and Ogun State in terms of insecurity, in terms of what has become the abysmal power failure of the ruling party to address the immediate needs of running effective local government administration for the benefit of the people at the grassroots, you could see that a lot of things are wrong with the system.
“People are yearning for the return of the PDP back to the local government level, where we will return it to the era of when the PDP was in power between 2003 and 2011.
“That was an era when local governments were buoyant enough to pick up their bills, to provide basic amenities for the people, to maintain rural roads, to construct health and maternity centres, to pay staff salaries and so on.
“If we have the assurances of the Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) and security agencies, if they can assure us of conducting a free, fair and credible election, I tell you, the PDP has a great chance of claiming all the 20 local governments in Ogun State. There is nothing stopping us from winning.
“What is important for us as a party is to request that OGSIEC should provide an atmosphere that will guarantee free, fair and credible local government election.
“What is the stand of APC as a party? Look, the question of insecurity is not limited to what is happening in Yewa North alone, it is an issue affecting all the parts of Ogun. The people are tired. Ogun is not secure under the APC,” he said.
Bankole asked the Ogun electoral commission to review the nomination fees, saying, “it is a deliberate attempt to disenfranchise a particular set of people from participating in the election, and to commercialise the process in favour of the ruling party.”
“We are going to give them a run for their money. This election is fire for fire, force for force and Naira for Naira. We are facing them headlong.
“We are participating fully in the election; money cannot scare us way from the battle. By God’s grace, we have the strength to win all the available posts in the election,” he maintained.