The Alliance for Democracy governorship candidate in the last election in Ondo State, Olusola Oke, has given reasons for his return to the All Progressives Congress.
Olusola Oke
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Olusola Oke, who will later today in Akure, the Ondo State capital, formally move with his supporters from AD to APC at a rally slated for MKO Abiola Democracy Park, has said his return to the APC was informed by the need to protect the interest of his supporters and for the development of Ondo State.
According to Premium Times, the former governorship candidate of Alliance for Democracy (AD) in the last election in Ondo State, said he was poised for the consequences of his action, despite fears in many quarters that the odds were against him.
Oke had left the All Progressives Congress (APC) last October in the wake of a crisis which rocked the party after an acrimonious primary which produced incumbent governor, Rotimi Akeredolu.
He joined the AD after the primary where he contested the main election. He came third in the election, behind Rotimi Akeredolu and the PDP candidate, Eyitayo Jegede.
While speaking in an interactive session with journalists on Wednesday, Oke said; “This is not about me, but about the development of the state and the need to ensure the well-being of our people.
“I want to align and contribute my quota to the development of the state, instead of sitting on the fence,” he said, adding that he received the nod from APC national leader, Bola Tinubu, before his movement.
He also said he was “on the same page” with the governor, Akeredolu, on his decision to return to the party. “Aketi has no tendency for deceit. I have discussed with him before taking this decision,” he said.
“I am not doing this for myself, but for Ondo State and I am coming to the party to add value”, he said, and also downplayed the possibility of engineering serious opposition within the APC, noting that he would deal with the challenges as they arise.
He also said there was no cause for worries as APC like other political parties has a fair share of its own internal crisis, and promised to join others to minimise conflict within the party, adding that he had returned so that some of his supporters would “not be left in the cold.”