“Eyitayo Jegede is the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ondo State. There is no controversy about it and any other person parading himself is a counterfeit."
The Ahmed Makarfi faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday maintained that Eyitayo Jegede remains its governorship candidate in Ondo State for the November 26th 2016 governorship election despite controversy trailing the candidacy of the party.
Mr. Makarfi, the embattled National Chairman of the polarized PDP, disclosed this on Wednesday at the official flag-off of the party’s governorship campaign rally held at Democracy Park in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
Mr. Makarfi, who was represented by Dayo Adeyeye, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, said the name of Mr. Jegede had been submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja for ratification.
He added that the governorship primary election in which Mr. Jegede emerged as the candidate of the factional PDP in Akure was well supervised by the embattled Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State.
“Eyitayo Jegede is the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ondo State. There is no controversy about it and any other person parading himself is a counterfeit,” Mr. Adeyeye said.
“His [Jegede’s] name is already with INEC and will be presented on the 26th of November 2016 when the governorship election is held. The officers of the Nigeria Police Force and the Directorate of the State Security Services all monitored the whole process where he [Jegede] emerged in Akure,” he explained.
The PDP National Chairman, who repeatedly begged the people of the State to vote for Mr. Jegede as the candidate of the factional party, said they are prepared for continuity in the government of Ondo State Governor Olusegun Mimiko.
Earlier, Mr. Mimiko told the cheering crowd that he is “battle ready” and implored the public to resist all forms of intimidation and harassment of the party’s candidate before the State governorship election.
The governor lampooned the other factional group of the PDP, adding that the people of the State would never succumb to any form of illegality and controversial court ruling.
“Today, I urge you to go ahead and work for the emergence of your son [Mr. Eyitayo Jegede] as the next governor after me,” he said.
Clement Faboyede, the State factional Chairman, stated that after Mr. Mimiko’s term, the next governor of Ondo State would be Eyitayo Jegede.
Mr. Jegede, in his acceptance speech, said the PDP would win the forthcoming governorship election in the State.
SaharaReporters reported that the flag-off campaign was well attended by PDP officials and drew a massive crowd in the State.
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