Adeleke, who dumped APC, emerges PDP candidate for Osun senatorial bye-election

The younger brother of late Isiaka Adeleke, Demola, has emerged the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the Osun West Senatorial District bye-election.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Mr. Adeleke, who had been cleared to contest for the primary on the platform of APC, defected to PDP on Tuesday evening.

Mr. Adeleke was set to contest the primary in APC unopposed after his opponent, Mudashiru Hussein, was disqualified on Sunday by the APC screening committee headed by Zamfara Assembly Speaker, Sanusi Rikiji.

Mr. Hussein was disqualified by the committee which stated that he was still in active public service against the party’s stipulated guideline.

According to Mr. Rikiji, the party’s guideline stipulates that any aspirant that wants to contest an elective office is expected to have resigned from the public service 30 days before the primaries.

Mr. Hussein was the Commissioner for Cabinet Matters in the Rauf Aregbesola administration which was inaugurated on May 30.

The disqualification was upheld by the Appeal Committee of the party headed by Abdulahi Bello.

Mr. Hussein was, however, cleared on Monday evening by the National Working Committee of the APC to contest the primary.

Mr. Adeleke, who contested the PDP primary unopposed on Wednesday in Iwo Local Government Area of the state, scored 343 votes.

In his acceptance speech, Mr. Adeleke said the PDP would win the election.

“I accepted to contest the election under PDP and come July 8, we shall have victory.

“Victory shall be ours and nothing can stop us. We are moving forward because it is God’s project,’’ he said.

The PDP Chairman in the state, Soji Adagunodo, said the party would win the bye-election.

According to him, there is no faction in PDP but only aggrieved members.

“We are going to win the election and come 2018, we will still win,” he said.

The Independent National Electoral Commission has fixed July 8 for the bye-election following the vacuum created by the death of Senator Adeleke on April 23.

(NAN)