Ondo APC members protest against indirect primary

By Osagie Otabor, Akure

Hundreds of members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo on Saturday protested against the adoption of the indirect mode of primary for the election of the party’s governorship candidate.

The APC is scheduled to hold its primary on July 20 and 11 aspirants have been cleared to contest at the primary.

Several placards with inscriptions such as “We want direct primary for the sake of equity and good of all’;’We don’t want Zamfara State experience, give us direct primary in Ondo State’; ‘ APC is our party, give us direct primary’ ;’ Save Ondo APC , direct primary will save our party from imminent collapse’, were brandished by the protesters.

The protesters chanted solidarity songs, denouncing indirect primaries

Speaking to journalists, Barrister Segun Ogodo, said the protest was to put the National Caretaker Committee of the party on notice that APC members in Ondo State reject indirect primary.

READ ALSO: 11 Ondo APC governorship aspirants reject indirect primary

He said: “We have to protest against indirect primary because the attempt by the committee to impose it on us will not do the party any good. There is a peculiar situation in Ondo State, we have two factional state executives and in such a case, the indirect primary would not work in the state.

“Out of 11 cleared aspirants, 10 chose direct primary but only one person said he wanted indirect so if the majority of the party members said they want direct primary, the wish of the minority should not be imposed on the majority. This is a democracy.”

Another protester, Mr. Rotimi Ogunleye, said the demand for the direct primary was for equity and justice for all party members.

“We are asking for equity, the caretaker committee should listen to the 10 governorship aspirants, they must not adopt direct primary because they know the mood of the members in Ondo State. They must not adopt a mode that will give advantage to a certain aspirant over others, that is why we say we want equity.”

But Ondo APC chairman, Mr Ade Adetimehin, insisted that he was the APC chairman in the state adding that there was no court case against his executives.