Aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress have protested at the party’s secretariat in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
The protesters, who are members of the APC in Abeokuta South Local Government, stormed the secretariat to protest the removal of their names from the delegate list ahead of the party’s primary elections.
The protesters carried placards with various inscriptions.
Among the inscriptions are “We reject the imposition of delegates”, “we opt for an open congress”, “Say no to the imposition of delegates”, and “Dialogue is a language in politics”.
The party members, drawn from Wards 5, 8, and 15 in Abeokuta South, lamented that they were sidelined in the list of delegates.
Speaking on behalf of the aggrieved party members, Sharafadeen Ogunwolu, called on the state executive of the APC to wade into “the removal of members of the party the delegate list in Ward 5, 8 and 15 ahead of the primaries to produce legislative candidates of the party.”
Ogunwolu said, “If there is no dialogue, there is no primary election with the substituted members of the party by Hon. Fagbenro and his executive.”
Reacting, the chairman of the party in the council, Henry Fagbenro, denied substituting members’ names on the list of delegates, saying the allegations lack merits.
Fagbenro explained that Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, had through the state party chairman, Yemi Sanusi, directed that leaders of the 15 wards be allowed to select five delegates from each ward for onward submission to the party secretariat.
He said, “If these people want to fight then they should face their ward leaders who nominated five names of members to make the delegate list.”
Meanwhile, other aggrieved members from Ijebu-Ode had protested over the same allegation. They also accused their leaders of sidelining them on the delegates list.
