Ahead of next year’s general elections, hundreds of members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ifedore Local Government Area of Ondo State on Monday, dumped the party for the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.
At a grand rally held at the PDP secretariat, Igbara-Oke, on Monday, the leader of the defectors, the leader of ‘Honest Ladies Group’, Mrs Toyin Adejiyan from Ilara-Mokin Ward 1,
said their defection is significant, saying it was a pointer that Ondo remains the home of PDP and the party would have a very good outing in the 2023 elections.
Speaking while receiving the defectors the PDP chairman in the local government, Chief Dare Owolafe, expressed confidence in the victory of the party and assured them of justice, fairness and equity amongst members of the PDP and called on others who are yet to join to do so.
He expressed confidence that the party will in any future election, urging others to join the winning party, and said “We are very happy to have APC members in our midst and we believe that it will boost the morale of our great party, it is a welcome development.”
An aspirant contesting for the state House of Assembly, Bamidele Ayodele, while welcoming the defectors said “the programme was to celebrate the decampees who have seen that the PDP is the only party that can rescue the country in the forthcoming general elections”.
Ayodele said the future of PDP in the state is very bright compared to the ruling APC, saying the APC government has failed woefully in bringing economic untold hardship to Nigerians.
“That’s why I will advise those that are defecting from APC to PDP to compare and contrast. They should stay and continue doing well because our party have a brighter tomorrow,” Ayodele said.
Former Chairman of PDP in the state, Mr Clement Faboyede, described the defection as a welcome development, saying the mass decamping to PDP was expected “because we are all living in this country and we know how it is today”.
“We can all see that Nigeria is no longer at ease. Is it in terms of security or education?
Our sons and daughters have been at home for the past six months now due to the ASUU strike, it is purely a leadership failure.
“We can’t continue like this. APC government has failed woefully. when Goodluck Jonathan was there as a president, we knew how the country was and we know how it is today.
“That is why we are saying no to APC government come 2023 general elections.
Nigerians should vote out APC from the ward level to the federal level. They have done havoc, they have failed woefully,” the former PDP chairman said.