The Owo General Assembly (OGA) has shelved its plan to prune the governorship aspirants on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The move was to improve Owo’s chances of producing Governor Olusegun Mimiko’s successor.
The group, in a statement endorsed by its National Co-ordinator and Secretary, Chief Akin Aruwajoye and Dr Monday Duromola, said it abandoned the move because “aspirants had jumped out of the fray” by buying party nomination forms.
The group said: “The payment of some of the candidates has, however, complicated the worth of the screening exercise. Can a person who has paid the fee be prevailed upon not to participate in the election process without any guarantee of refund? What will be the security implication of announcing the result at this time? Will releasing the result now improve our chances of getting the slot or contribute to the peace in the land? What will be the impact of releasing the result when three aspirants have already jumped into the fray on our overall strategy of reducing the number of aspirants so that we don’t dissipate resources? Accordingly, the committee has decided to put the result in abeyance.
“The committee expresses its appreciation and gratitude to the candidates who kept faith with the agenda of the Owo. Your act of patriotism will not be forgotten. We also like to thank all committee members and the generality of Owo people for their faith in us.
The committee wishes all the candidates best of luck and prays God to anoint an Owo kingdom indigene as the next governor of Ondo State. This remains the only essence and desire of the Assembly, its committee and its members. We remain committed to doing all that is possible and legitimate at ensuring that the an Owo/Ose person emerges as the next governor of Ondo State.”