Oyo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has threatened to remove the deputy governor of the state, Rauf Olaniyan, if he fails to resign voluntarily, following his defection to the opposition party, All Progressives Congress.
Akeem Olatunji, PDP’s Publicity Secretary in the state issued the warning in a statement released on Monday.
Recall that Olaniyan, who was elected along with Governor Seyi Makinde as Deputy Governor on the platform of PDP in 2019, on Sunday announced his exit from PDP and All Progressives Congress (APC) as his new part.
Read Also: Rauf Olaniyan, Oyo Deputy Gov, Defects To APC Ahead Of 2023 Elections
Reacting to the development, PDP, which is the ruling party in the state, has now advised the deputy governor to resign immediately.
The party said Olaniyan should resign as the deputy governor “since he wilfully abandoned the political party and the votes that produced him as such on the party’s joint ticket.”
It warned that it would not allow Olaniyan and his new party to enjoy the benefits of the votes cast for the PDP at the 2018 governorship election.
Olatunji said the PDP leadership in the state, South-West, and national levels all intervened at different times to resolve whatever the situation fueling the suspected defection plan was but Olaniyan left.
The statement read in part;
Our position is simple and very clear on this matter and as a matter of legal implication, the votes in any election in Nigeria are to political parties, and not candidates.
It is on this note that the PDP as the ruling party in the state is advising the Deputy Governor, Rauf Olaniyan, not to be carried away by the lies and deceits told him by a political neophyte such as ‘Mr jagba’ and be bamboozled into self-delusion of thinking he can be used as a tool to steal Oyo people’s mandate through the backdoor.
Failure to follow this advice and adhere strictly to it from the PDP which is the legitimate owner of every single vote cast by the electorate in the 2019 governorship election, the PDP shall not hesitate to immediately deploy every constitutional means to prevent this daylight robbery.
We’re determined and resolved to retrieve the party’s mandate being withheld illegally and unlawfully by the deputy Governor, Rauf Olaniyan because it belongs to the people of Oyo state who have handled same to the PDP.
APC’s Welcome
However, Olaniyan was welcomed to APC by the governorship candidate of the party, Senator Teslim Folarin.
Folarin described Olaniyan’s defection as a good development, saying it was unfortunate for the ruling party to lose such a political asset.
The governorship candidate, who said this in a statement warned the governor not to think about instigating the removal of the deputy governor because of the step he had taken.
He said;
I want to state that His Excellency Olaniyan’s position as validly elected Deputy Governor of Oyo State is secured and constitutionally-backed; his tenure ends on May 29, 2023. Therefore, the ruling PDP must perish the impeachment agenda or further victimisation in any form. APC has zero tolerance for harassment, humiliation, and victimisation of any of her members.
H.E Olaniyan and his teeming supporters will not be the last to join the Oyo APC Rescue Mission 2023, many more PDP political office holders and their chieftains will announce their transfers in no distant future.
It added;
With personalities such as Olaniyan in the APC, PDP will suffer electoral humiliation in the 2023 general election. The strongest indicator for conducting an opinion poll is the uncontrollable exodus that has been hitting Oyo State PDP since 2019.
His Excellency Olaniyan’s defection to the APC is a morale booster for us ahead of the 2023 elections. We will give him a rousing welcome after the 2022 APC Presidential Primary Election scheduled to hold between Monday, June 6 and Tuesday, June 7, 2022.
