Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo State, Mr. Dayo Ogungbenro has declared that the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state has gone on a long political voyage and will never return.
Ogungbenro, who stated this during a media parley with journalists in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, noted that the APC may not likely return to the state’s Government House in a couple of dispensations to come.
Ogungbenro charged journalists present at the parley to keep the governing PDP in the state on its toes, stressing that it would help party members to perform much better.
“You can do a comparative analysis of governments. All of you are all in Oyo State before now. You have seen it yourself. Politics essentially is about service.
“Keep us on our toes so that we can improve. If you keep us on our toes, you are indirectly improving us.
“You are the watchdog of the society. Keep us on our toes.”
“I will appreciate constructive criticism. You are not politicians, we know, but you work with politicians, you will work with me as the PDP Chairman in Oyo State, you will work with the government of PDP headed by Governor Seyi Makinde, and you will work with the other parties too, but whatever is not ours, please don’t credit it to us.
“Where you need to call us to attention, please call on us, where you need to criticize constructively for the purpose of corrections please do, and my office is open to you pressmen working in Oyo State and I think together we shall go miles as partners in progress.” He stated.
The PDP Chairman in Oyo State, while answering questions from journalists, said efforts are on by Governor Makinde to bring aggrieved members of the party back to the fold.
“During my acceptance speech on the day we were elected at Lekan Salami Stadium, Adamasingba Ibadan, I appealed to all aggrieved members and their sentiments to come back to the party, I and you will remember that when the leader of our party and the Government, Engr Seyi Makinde took the microphone, he repeated same thing.
“Publicly on Sunday at the Arcade in front of Government House, the Governor said he was ready to welcome everybody, stressing that those who felt aggrieved should come back that and promised that we shall sort things out. It was then he appealed to their sentiments. That is government and appointment is continuous, yours can come three months, mine can come six months. The Governor is at liberty to appoint even till the last day he is leaving office.
“Let me give you an example, the governor gave me instruction to call some persons to a dinner, about three of them, he gave me their names specifically that I should invite them.
“I invited them. I felt they must hear my voice, I wanted to go down to their houses then I gave a call, two of them were diplomatic in their responses. One just brutally denounced me and I had to swallow my pride and that is the pride of leadership. What else do you want this Governor to do?” Ogungbenro said.
The Chairman noted that although there is party supremacy in a presidential system of government, he stressed that the government becomes the pillar of political party after it gives birth to government. He reiterated that Governor Makinde, by reason of being the head of government in the state and the southwest, remains the leader of the party in Yorùbáland, urging the aggrieved members to treat the governor with courtesy while expressing their grievances.
Ogungbenro also said he has been mandated by Governor Makinde to raise the bar of the party’s image assuring, that the ruling party will continue to sustain the mutual relationship with the press as partners in progress.
He added that his team of party excos at both the state and local government levels will put in more efforts to ensure sustainability of the love and affection towards the PDP and its government in the state.