By Dare Akogun
About ten thousand members of the Kwara state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Saturday decamped to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.
The decampees who cut across local government areas of Kwara State made their decision known during a ceremony to welcome them to the PDP at the residence of the immediate past Senate President Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki.
The decampees led by Kayode Ogunlowo, a former aide to Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed and Saka Babatunde said they decided to leave the APC because of the way the Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq led administration and the All Progressive Congress, APC treated the foot soldiers that worked for its victory in 2019.
He said the sacrifices of party men like him and others were not reciprocated, but instead they were victimized out of the Party.
Kayode Ogunlowo
“They lied to us to win back our support then and now they don’t care about our interest anymore. The party did not reciprocate our sacrifice and contribution to their success in 2019.
“This decamping exercise to the PDP which is an effort to restore good governance that is presently missing in the state will show the APC our strength,” he said.
Ogunlowo however apologised to Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki and the PDP for the way and manner the 2019 campaigns were carried out using propaganda to tarnish the image of Saraki and his Party.
Dr. Saraki in his short remarks asked the decampees to go back to their respective polling units and wards to talk to the people on the need to vote the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in 2023.
He said the 2023 election is not about baseless accusations and propaganda, but with performance and track records of service delivery which the current APC government in the state and the federal level can not match.
In his remarks while receiving the decampees the State Party Chairman, Hon. Babatunde Mohammed, while welcoming the decampees expressed gratitude to the decampees for finding PDP a party worthy to be associated with.
He assured the new defectors that the PDP will meet their demands and prioritise their welfare.
Dignitaries at the event include the party’s Deputy Gubernatorial candidate in the 2023 election Hon. Gbenga Makanjuola, the Kwara North senatorial candidate Hon. Isa Bawa, party stalwarts and faithfuls.
The defectors thereafter set ablaze their party membership cards and the APC symbol ‘broom’ was set ablazed.
