Barring any last-minute change of plans, the formal defection of a former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, and hundreds of his loyalists from the Labour Party to the Peoples Democratic Party holds on Wednesday(today) in Aso Rock, Abuja. Daniel, who defected from the Alliance for Democracy to the PDP and won the governorship election in 2003, left the PDP for the Labour Party early this year with some of his loyalists in the Peoples Party of Nigeria, which he established in 2011 to secure elective seats for some of his followers. The former governor is also returning to the PDP with some members of the All Progressives Congress, who were said to be afraid that the face-off between Governor Ibikunle Amosun and an APC leader in the state, former governor Olusegun Osoba, might not be resolved before the 2015 general elections. A competent source in Daniel’s camp told our correspondent on Tuesday that the former governor’s contingent would be in Aso Rock on Wednesday to do “(Governor Olusegun) Mimiko’s defection style.” The source said, “Unfailingly, we are going to Abuja to do our formal defection in Aso Rock on Wednesday night. We have decided to adopt the Mimiko’s defection style; there is no need to linger and talk about defection individually. We shall do it once and together in Aso Rock.” It was learnt that the defection had been made easy as the PDP had granted Daniel and his followers a waiver. “One good thing about the defection is that our group has been granted a waiver; we don’t need to go and queue at the ward levels to be screened and registered. We now have an opportunity to contest positions in our various constituencies without hitches. “Those who have defected or will defect outside this group will, however, need to look towards the National Working Committee of the party to get a waiver,” the source said. According to the source, Daniel may not pick the PDP ticket to run for the Ogun-East senatorial seat as being calculated because the former governor is said to be nursing an ambition to extend his political influence to a sizable part of the South-West. “Yes, the issue of the Senate seat is being discussed but Daniel may not pick the ticket; he may give that to one of his close allies. He has his eyes on a higher post in the party hierarchy, which will allow him to exercise more influence in the South-West instead of picking a seat in the Senate and be ‘limited’ to Ogun State,” he said. The source’s submission, however, differed slightly from the position of one of the governorship aspirants in the state’s PDP, who believed the ex-governor would “struggle to pick the Senate ticket.” Copyright PUNCH. All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH. Contact: editor@punchng posted on October 08, 2014 at 12:14AM Send an email to Joseph T. Obagbemisoye 08140584469 or 08086797418 Like JTNNG on facebook facebook/jtnng91 View Joseph T. Obagbemisoyes profile on facebook facebook/jtob91 Follow @jtob91 and get followed also jtnng.blogspot/
Posted on: Tue, 07 Oct 2014 23:37:20 +0000
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