The Lagos State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the 2023 election, Dr. Abdulazeez Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, says leaders of the party who supported another candidate during the last elections have ceased to be members of the party.

In what appeared to be a stock-taking session, Jandor hosted members of his campaign team to a thank you ceremony and a state of the nation address where he also declared that he is now the leader of the PDP in the state.

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According to him, leaders of the party who openly declared for another candidate both during the presidential and governorship elections are no longer members of the party.

Daily Trust reports that Jandor came third in the governorship election won by the incumbent Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu.

He also lost the cases filed at the Tribunal, Appeal Court and the Supreme Court where he sought to be declared the winner of the election, alleging that the governor presented a fake secondary school result.

Reminiscing on the entire process, Jandor said the experience of the PDP and its candidates in the 2023 election was not different from the past when some party leaders betrayed the party by working against its candidates.

Some leaders of the party worked for the candidate of Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi in the Presidential election.

The governorship candidate reiterated that working against the party has been the stock in trade of those party leaders, recalling that in the 2019 election, the same group declared support for ADP against PDP and also worked for Labour Party in the 2017 local government election.

“What happened has been their stock in trade. If you don’t want to be in PDP again, carry your bag and go.

“Those who have declared for labour, they should stay there. Those who have worked for APC, they should enjoy it. The owner of the party is at the centre and we are waiting for them to tell us how they want their party to be run at the state level.”

He however declared that as the candidate of the party in the last election, he is now the number one leader of the party.

“As of today I am number one in the party. I am saying this with due respect to other faithful leaders I met in PDP, I am now the number one by virtue of the constitution of our party except I choose to leave tomorrow,” he declared.

He however assured that he would remain in the party to continue to provide the leadership for every party member “looking for a true leader that is selfless.” “I am ready to provide leadership for all of you. I still have the flag of our party in my hand and I am not dropping it,” he stated.

Speaking on the outcome of the Supreme Court judgement on the election, the PDP chieftain stated that what the court has said from the judgement was that a candidate could give the electoral body a NEPA Bill as certificate.

“If you want to contest election, just look for a NEPA Bill and your name doesn’t have to be there and give it to INEC, you would run for elections,” he stated.

On the state of the nation, Jandor decried the hardship in the land and challenged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to be alive to his responsibility.

He said the removal of the subsidy should not have been done immediately after the President assumed the leadership of the country, saying the President should have waited till he constituted his cabinet and prepared the mind of Nigerians to the implication of the subsidy removal.

The Senatorial candidate of the party for Lagos West, Segun Adewale popularly known as Aeroland said the so-called leaders have brought misfortunes into the party.

He called on them to leave the party for the serious minded and genuine members to take over. (Daily Trust)

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