By Eric Elezuo
The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State, Dr. Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, has narrated how he turned down offers from the powers that be to truncate his governorship ambition in the state. The PDP stalwart also claimed that amid all the unfavorable conditions that trailed his ambition from every corner, especially his party, he won over 40 per cent of the total votes cast in the election.
Jandor made this revelation while giving account of how he fared in the just concluded March 18, 2023 governorship election, which the incumbent governor and flag bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Babajide Sanwo-Olu won, in a statement he personally signed.
While appreciating all and sundry including members of his immediate family, his running mate, Funke Akindele and Lagosians, he took a swipe at his party for abandoning in the heat of the campaign without contributing a dime, stressing that fees meant for agents are still to be released till date. He also knocked members of the party, who defected to the APC at the last minute, noting that the defection proved that there were moles in the party, and the action was necessary as the moles of yesteryears in the Lagos PDP have been unveiled.
He blamed the ruling party for the outcome of the election, citing high volume of violence and intimidation that characterised the polls. He however maintained that he is still consulting, and will soon intimate followers of the next course of action.
Read the detailed account below:
I cannot start any kind of address to my fellow Lagosians about the just concluded Lagos governorship elections without first collecting data on everything that characterized the March 18th election in Lagos State.
I must, at this point, express how overwhelmed I am with gratitude for every single person who supported the PDP in Lagos and my candidacy for governor.
From 245 wards, thousands of people joined our rallies, shared our campaign manifesto, defended our mandate, and came out in their numbers to vote.
My special appreciation goes to my wife and kids, whose understanding and sacrifice saw me this far on this project.
My party, the PDP, alongside all party members, I thank you for entrusting me with the flag of the party.
May I also use this opportunity to appreciate my running mate, Olufunke Akindele who left certainty for this uncertainty, thereby putting the love of our dear state and her people, over and above her comfort zone to join this race with me.
We ran a campaign no one has ever undertaken in the history of Lagos State politics, by visiting places that politicians, including those in power, have never been.
I am happy to report that days leading to our election, we resisted all offers from the powers that be, to back down for crumbs, and when that failed, they swooped on to covet PDP Leaders and followers, who can’t persevere for a better tomorrow, just to destabilize our ranks days to the election, part of which you would have heard the Lagos State Deputy Governor owning up to on a national Television.
They needed that to happen to be able to justify their election day shenanigans, and truly…it’s the excuse they gave today for PDP performance on election day.
I am very comforted by the show of solidarity we saw at the polls and the seriousness with which ordinary citizens approached the 2023 elections. Even when the ruling government, frightened by our collective resolve and the possibility of them being exposed to not holding the will of the people, resorted to violence and intimidation, you all stood strong and protected your vote.
Unfortunately, the ruling party refused to honour the will of the people, but our fight is proof that things have changed for the better and I am humbled to have contributed to that change.
I have refrained from putting out a personal statement after my press conference on Monday the 20th of March 2023. This is because I felt it was the best course of action in light of everything that happened during and after the elections, to be able to give a proper account of what transpired against the narrative of the defection of some people from the PDP to APC, which to us, was official unveiling ceremony of moles of yesteryears in Lagos PDP.
This same mole went as far as discouraging the unsuspecting National body of our party not to send down any support for the Lagos Guber election, unfortunately, our party fell for it, and not a single kobo was availed us to undertake that election.
Even the obligation of the party on Agent fees hasn’t been settled up till now.
We ran it all by ourselves and I am proud of everyone who played one role or the other to ensure a hitch-free exercise on March 18th, despite all the principalities that worked against us.
We sincerely hope the party harkens to our calls on this and help resolve this as soon as possible.
Despite all this, my team and I have spent time putting together all the necessary information that characterized the elections, and raw data collected indicated we have over 40% of the total votes cast during the March 18th election in Lagos State. Very soon, this will come open in public space.
As I mentioned during my Press Conference, the election is a process and not an event. At the end of my consultations, I will make public our position on the next process.
I thank you all once again for your support and will keep you all updated as we continue to work toward a Lagos that works for all…
