We Will Continue To Put Pressure On Gbenga Daniel To Lead Us To APC - Ogun PDP Chieftain, Waliu Taiwo

 

A close associate of former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel a.k.a OGD and former Director General of the Ladi Adebutu Governorship Campaign Organization under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State, Hon. Waliu Taiwo has declared that OGD must lead his supporters to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Waliu Taiwo, who served as a commissioner under OGD was reacting to the decision of the former governor to resign from active politics.
Speaking in an interview recently, Taiwo confirmed that it was the supporters of OGD that called for a meeting at his Asoludero Court in Shagamu, Ogun State two weeks ago to urge him to lead them to the APC after they had worked for the success of the party at the governorship election.
The former commissioner disclosed that OGD would be compelled by his supporters to remain in politics and lead them to the APC in due course, adding that he could not abandon the boat at the middle of the sea.
"We were the ones that called the meeting in OGD's house in Shagamu, when we heard that he was retiring from politics.
"We are on our way to the APC. OGD is a leader that believes in his followers. It was the followers that made the name OGD popular and he would listen to us rather than listening to the people that are saying rubbish. We will continue to put serious on him to lead us to APC because of the peculiarities and dynamic natures of Ogun State politics.
"I raised three points to OGD at the meeting. I said where would he inherit his resignation from; is it from Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Chief Abraham Adesanya, or from Baba Ajasin, from Tafawa Balewa or Nnamdi Azikiwe? These were political titans, they never said that they wanted to retire from politics till they died.
"The second point was that OGD virtually reconciled everybody and I said that ordinarily I would not have been at the meeting if not for the reconciliation he did.
"Thirdly, I told him that we worked for the APC and that he promised to get us back into the government.
"At that point, everybody stood up, some were prostrating and begging him not to abandon us and told him that he should lead us to the APC. In fairness to him, he has not said anything yet, but we are putting more pressure on him and we know that he is a listening leader," he said.
Taiwo however, described those insinuating that the protest at the meeting was stage-managed by OGD as people with bad intentions.
According to him, "It was somebody that told us that OGD said he was going to quit politics, but we said that was not possible. So, we arranged the meeting in his house in Asoludero Court in Shagamu, Ogun State after the governorship election.
"Our role in the election brought victory for the APC.
"Ladi Adebutu wanted us to work for the APM, so some of our people worked for the APM, while the rest of us worked for the APC, so why are they talking about OGD only."
On why OGD and his supporters did not support the candidate of the PDP in the election, Taiwo stated that they decided to pitch their tent  with another party, since, according to him, the PDP didn't have a candidate for the election.
He stressed that the candidate of the PDP for the election was Buruji Kashamu, who he said had been expelled him from the party.
"How could we have supported Buruji, so we had no choice than to go somewhere else after consulting with our leader, OGD.
"Legally, Buruji Kashamu was the candidate of the party, while Hon. Ladi Adebutu was the real candidate the party preferred, but the INEC would naturally recognise the person that the judicial recognition.
"That was why the name of Kashamu was regarded as the governorship candidate of the PDP by the INEC for the election," he said.
He pointed out that what happened in 2011, when Ogun West Senatorial District had two governorship candidates in the state; Mr. Gboyega Nasir Isiaka (GNI) and Gen.. Tunji Olurin (Rtd) repeated itself in 2019 with GNI and Hon. Abdulkabir Akindele Akinlade as two Yewa men in the race again
This, he said led to a dilemma for people like him from Ogun West, but that there was no way they could support any of the candidates, so that what happened in 2011 would not be repeated itself, when none of the two candidates won.
"If truly Governor Ibikunle Amosun wanted a Yewa man to be Governor, he would have supported GNI and dropped Akinlade.
"People that were supporting Senator Adeola Olamilekan aka Yayi started supporting GNI as soon as Yayi was out of the picture.
"The people that supported GNI were the people that wanted a Yewaman as the Governor and not the people that supported Akinlade.
"GNi was a better candidate, but we felt that the same thing that happens in 2011 would repeat itself.
"What was wrong then had not been removed. If you add the votes of GNI to those of Akinlade, a Yewa man would have won and we would have produced the first Governor from Ogun West," he said