The gale of defections from opposition parties to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun State gathered further momentum on Wednesday as Governor Dapo Abiodun received former ward leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC) from four local government areas into the ruling party.
The defectors came from Ijebu North, Ijebu East, Ijebu North-East and Odogbolu Local Government Areas of Ogun East Senatorial District.
Receiving them at a meeting in Abeokuta, Abiodun described the APC as the party to beat in the state and questioned the continued stay of some politicians in opposition parties despite what he described as their successive electoral defeats.
“We don’t make noise, we don’t drink whisky or Hennessy; we work to ensure the continuous development of the state,” the governor said.
Abiodun specifically referred to the performance of the PDP in the 2019 and 2023 elections, saying he found it difficult to understand why some of its members remained in the opposition.
“Those of you who are still with the Peoples Democratic Party, I find it difficult to understand why you are still there. In 2019, they lost; in 2023, they lost again. What are you still doing there?” he asked.
He also questioned what the ADC had to offer its members, particularly in areas where the party and PDP had suffered electoral setbacks.
The governor said his administration would continue to prioritise the completion of projects inherited from previous administrations, arguing that such projects were funded with taxpayers’ money and should not be abandoned.
“This is the first government that has completed abandoned projects from previous administrations. Doing that is part of my vow because they were not embarked upon with anybody’s father’s money; they were funded with our taxes. So, we have to finish them,” he said.
Abiodun cited the completion of a hospital project and the Buhari Estate as examples of inherited projects completed by his administration.
He explained that completing such projects was important to ensure that public resources already committed to them were not wasted.
“Even though we were not the ones that started the hospital and the Buhari Estate, we finished them,” he said.
The governor urged the new APC members to support the party and promote the Renewed Hope Agenda, assuring them that a formal rally would soon be organised to celebrate their defection.
He also assured the defectors that they would not be disappointed, saying they would begin to benefit from the dividends of democracy under the APC-led administration.
The State Chairman of the APC, Chief Yemi Sanusi, welcomed the defectors and described their decision to join the ruling party as a wise one.
Sanusi said the APC remained an accommodating political platform that provided opportunities for members to contribute to the development of the state.
Speaking separately, former PDP Chairman of Ward 2, Ijebu North, Hon. Adebowale Emmanuel; Chairman of Ward 6, Ijebu North, Prince Adeyemi Adewale; and Ajibandele Ward Chairman in Ijebu East, Hon. Adedokun Kazeem, said they had decided to leave the opposition and join what they described as the development train under the Abiodun administration.
The Secretary of the ADC in Ijebu East Local Government, Chief Michael Bakare, thanked Abiodun for facilitating the recognition of the people of Imobi through the appointment of a traditional ruler.
Bakare said their decision to join the APC was motivated by a desire to leave what he described as retrogression and embrace progress.
Also, the ADC Chairman in Ijebu North-East Local Government, Hon. Erinle Opeoluwa Samuel, commended developments across the state, saying the decision to join the APC was one they ought to have made earlier.
