PDP carpets Ganduje, says boast of capturing Ondo State, reckless

…reminds APC of 1983 crisis in old Ondo State

By Tunde Opalana

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described as reckless and empty boast statement made by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Umar Ganduje that the ruling party will ‘capture’ Ondo State during the November 16 governorship election.

National Publicity Secretary of the party, Hon. Debo Ologunagba knocked Ganduje while interacting with the media at the PDP national secretariat in Abuja on Monday.

The PDP spokesperson said: “I just feel I should have this conversation is to react to the reckless and irresponsible statement by the chairman of the All Progressive Congress which was credit to him in Ondo State, wherein he said that the APC is set to capture Ondo and then use that as a gateway to capture Oyo state and Osun states.

“And these are the statements that we have seen over the months, talking about totalitarianism and one party state in this country.

“If you look at the dictionary meaning of capture, and I just checked it and it says, to take by force or strategy, take prisoners. So what he’s saying is that he’s going to take the South West State and its people as prisoners of war. So for us, it is troubling”.

Sounding a note of warning to Ganduje and the ruling APC, Ologunagba said: ” The people of South West have a very rich history, a people that are very strong willed, that are politically educated and they know what they want. And for anybody who is a student of history, will recognise clearly that the South West has always been a bastion for democratic rights.

“In the old Oyo empire, there are controls for the Oba, the Alaafin of Oyo that whenever he is acting away from the people, they can tell him to go and commit suicide as a control. So for anybody, Ganduje for that matter to come into Ondo State and say those reckless things, call for the attention of Nigerians and indeed the international community that he is a threat to democracy.”

Going down the memory lane, Ologunagba said: “In 1983 you will recall, when the recklessness of the then NPN continue in this manner, and it is unfortunately, it looks like history is repeating itself, when they tried to impose Omoboriowo as governor of Oyo State by rigging election. The consequences of that can again be traced to what brought that republic to an end in 1983. So we are warning the APC, this is a warning directly to Ganduje.

“And so to Ganduje, he should be careful about the South West, because he could be declared as a ‘personal non grata’ in the South West for these recklessness.

“The APC should know, and I’m sure some of the APC leaders recognise that and they should stay away from Ondo State. The election of November 16 in Ondo State is a different ball game entirely.

“The people of Ondo state are ready, they are set to vote for the PDP and any attempt, with regards to the history of Ondo people, you can’t cow them, you cannot suppress them from whatever they believe in.

“So recognising that, the APC should watch it, and they should know that, we do not take threats and the idea of capture. We’ve never been captured, we are not prisoners.

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“If Ganduje was captured, which I think from the history they were, he can reflect that in his own area, but not in the southwest.

“And it’s actually a clear signal that the APC should stay clear for Ondo State, allow it to have a free and fair election”.