10th February, 2024
By Adeyemi Adeleye
A former chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Lagos Otunba Segun Adewale, has attributed the failure of the party to win elections in the state since 1999 to corruption and disunity among the members.
Adewale, popularly known as Aeroland, was also the Lagos West Senatorial District PDP Candidate in the 2023 election.
He told journalists on Thursday in Lagos that the serial electoral misfortunes of the party in the state were due to mismanagement of election funds by party leaders as well as their anti-party activities.
He added that unless the leaders changed their ways, it would be difficult for PDP to defeat the ruling APC in the state.
“How Lagos PDP leadership mismanage election funds each election year will not allow the party to win elections in the state. This happens every election year.
“It happens every four years. The one of 2023 general elections was higher.
“Out of all the money released to Lagos PDP to prosecute the 2023 election, less than 50 percent got to the state and to the party foot soldiers.
“It was the one that I brought into the state to fund election that party’s foot soldiers got, others collected the money and pocketed it,” the PDP chieftain said.
According to him, many top party leaders engaged in anti-party activities, alleging that some members of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council also compromised in the 2023 general elections.
Adewale said that he had video evidence to prove that some PDP leaders, including some of the members of the Alhaji Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Council, worked for the ruling APC in the last election.
Adewale added: “I saw for the first time how few Lagos PDP leaders spent election mobilization funds in the last 2023 general elections.
“I was involved last year and it was horrible the way the money got taken away by a few Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) leaders,”
Adewale, who noted that he was involved in the sharing of the funds to prosecute the election, said a particular top PCC leader personalized the funds rather than use it for elections.
He said “For PDP’s story to change in Lagos, national leaders should make those entrusted with election funds to account for the money.
“One of the reasons why we lost the election in Lagos is that there has been no accountability for election funds by leaders since 1999.
“How much was given to prosecute elections each year? No one cares. What we see is that three or five or six people will just sit on the money and take the money away.”
Adewale said there was a need to put a structure in place to promote accountability in Lagos PDP to check mismanagement of election funds in 2027 and beyond
(NAN)