The political crisis between the Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko and the former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governorship Candidate in the State, Chief Olusola Oke has taken another dimension as Oke has challenged Mimiko to account for N80million campaign fund given to him during President Goodluck Jonathan’s rally in the state.
Oke said Mimiko was still acting as a sole administrator as he normally does during his days in Labour Party (LP) where no one questioned him.
The PDP leader said he was forced to react following a publication sponsored by Mimiko in This Day newspaper last week Thursday targeted in destroying his political integrity.
In the said publication titled; “Oke playing the loser’s game”, his political clout was described as nothing, while that of the State Coordinator for President Goodluck Jonathan Campaign team, Mr. Tokunbo Modupe was seen as the best choice for the party.
He was also accused of working with the opposition party, All Progressives Congress (APC) secretly by allegedly ordering his followers to decamp to the party.
But, while addressing reporters at the weekend in Akure, the State Capital, Oke said the publication was targeted at painting him as a man who is not doing enough for Jonathan’s re-election.
He noted that the sponsor of the story, whom he called Mimiko said he is always found of tarnishing people’s image in order to elevate him, saying he was not the first person, the governor would be doing that to and he would never be the last person.
The PDP Leader alleged that for so long, the governor has been witch-hunting him in the party since his days in LP.
He informed that Mimiko allegedly opened up that he was the one who blocked him from being inaugurated as NEMA Chairman despite being appointed by Jonathan, and also blocked him from emerging as PDP National Secretary in 2012 PDP national Convention.
He said, “When the issue of ministerial slot came out after 2011 general elections, the President seeded two slots to the national working committee, one was to come from the south, one from the north and without debate, the NWC put down my name it was this same Mimiko who did everything to frustrate my emergence and the end of the day, he succeeded in picking his sister from the same ward. This is the first time, this will happen in Ondo State that the governor and the minister would come from the same ward. I didn’t complain.
“I have maintained some intention mutetism on the political situation in the country and especially in Ondo State so that, I am not misunderstood and presently I prefer at this time to do the work and less talking because I believed that the politic of contemporary in Nigeria is not about propaganda it is about interacting with the people, showing them whom you are, tell them what you can do, tell them what you have done with your promises in the past and engender confidence in future with the people.
“I am convinced in my mind that the people behind this publication are no other persons than the PDP of LP extraction in the state and I point all the fingers at Governor Olusegun Mimiko. I am convinced that he is behind this, it is in his character, nature and a leopard can never change his skin. He is at it again.
“Reading that publication, we know that the target of Mimiko is to give the impression to our leaders in Abuja that whatever success they recorded in Ondo State, he is the one doing it.
“Of course, he did it when he was not in PDP. In 2011, I was the National Legal Adviser of PDP and I was one of the foremost leaders that worked tirelessly for the emergence of Mr. President in Ondo State. In my local government, we recorded 77,000, in Ese-Odo where Kingsley Kuku came from, we recorded 43,000, in Okitipupa where late Governor Agagu came from , we recorded 28,000 and that was the number.
“In Ondo West where Dr. Mimiko claimed to be working for Mr. President, he recorded 24,000 which was lesser than the number of votes the PDP recorded in the national Assembly elections where we worked differently.
” It was cleared that he never worked for Mr. President even though he collected all the money, lying to Mr. President that he was supporting him. I am amazed that he still continue in this game of claiming glory where he has not invested.
“The other thing he wants to achieve this time around is to blackmail and bring down my personality that I have not worked so that again in his character,nobody will rise to prominence in the state. I will not be patronized because he would have lied to them.
“He alleged that I have not been working for the party. First and foremost, I am not answerable to Dr. Mimiko. I am a leader of PDP in the State and I worked independently. I am a leader, he is a leader and we also have other leaders in the state. So, I am not expected to be doing a daily report to him about how I work.
“He believes in propaganda but I believed in interacting with the people. I go from community to community. For instance, last week I came home, I met with the youths, the women leaders of the party and community leaders and I am not one person that jump around. I am one person, who had been in the PDP since inception, I am not a joiner. I didn’t go to AD, I didn’t go to Labour Party and I have been here and so no new comer will come and talk to me on how to work in PDP.
“I am the one to educate them about democracy in PDP, about how we behave here. About how we respect integrity of people, about how we relate with each other. We in PDP, don’t have an headmaster or sole administrator. So it is call a dog a bad name in order to gang it or anybody to sponsor a publication that I am not working for PDP.
“We all know the reactions of the people on the so called organised campaign. It was cleared on that they that the people do not want their faces again. The people are tired of the fallacy, they are tired of the deception, they are tired of failed promises, they are tired of poverty, they are tired of backwardness and they are tired of being deceived. So, we are the only one people that still command the credibility of talking to people of Ondo State for them to believe that there is still future.
“It is unfair for anyone to accuse me to the extend of saying I am romancing with APC, I am a politician of national repute. If I have any reason to leave PDP, I will leave. I have no reason to leave because it is my party, I breath PDP, dream PDP and I have been in the party for so long.
“I am not like others who jumped in and out. They jumped in when the weather is good and go out when is not good. Six years, we have not being in government in the state and the party was moving on but for the population of that came in from his decampment we all know before his coming, I was receiving decampees from LP and APC on daily basis. APC was almost going out of existence in Ondo state before the current pollution.
“So, if anyone said I am not working, it is because I am not answerable to them and I am not going to show my testimonial of what I am going to do. I am a believer of the transformation agenda of Mr. President. How I will do my work, I am not going to report to any landlord or headmaster.
“It was also raised that the Presidential rally that I didn’t contribute but yet came there to speak big grammar, I am sure they are being intimidated by my rising profile. The people of Ondo State believed me because I never deceived them so whatever I say, I do.
” The truth of that rally is that, I am told that the national secretary released N80million which Mr. Governor collected and he never told anybody how he spent it. Till today, no account. I am sufficiently leading in this party for somebody to tell me this amount of money, this how we are going to spend it. Not withstanding the appropriation of this money, I want to at this occasion give a glory to God and someone like Kingsley Kuku both of us sat when we saw the way the programme was being organized, we knew it was going to be a colossal failure.
“There are 206 wards in the state, we released two vehicles each for the ward. Kuku printed posters because at the eve of the rally, there was no any posters. We printed vests. Mobilised people from different ethnic and social groups with money. Kuku bought head ties and wrappers for the women in to make the event a great one.
” So, for somebody who have collected N80,000 to have claimed that we didn’t do anything despite the money spent was from our personal money, I think it is another case of calling a dog a bad name in order to hang it. On that day, when I mounted the Podium, we all saw the different between the darkness and light”.