Lagos State PDP Spokesman Alhaji Hakeem Amode has dumped the state’s main opposition party for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Amode and other PDP chieftains announced his defection at a news conference on Monday in Ikeja.
Amode said he and other defectors were motivated and inspired by the visionary leadership of the 2023 State PDP Governorship Candidate, Dr Abdul-Azeez Adediran (Jandor), who had moved to the APC earlier.
“It is with great honour and a profound sense of responsibility that we stand before you today to announce a pivotal decision that marks a significant turning point not just for us as individuals but for many committed political stakeholders who have journeyed with us over the years.
“Today, we have decided to collapse the entire PDP structure in Lagos State, from ward to the state level, to align with His Excellency Jandor to defect en masse to the APC.
“The PDP, both at the national and state levels, has lost its way. The party has deviated from the founding ideals that once made it Africa’s largest and most respected political platform.
“Today, its future is riddled with tension and uncertainty. The PDP is in a coma and may not survive unless urgent measures are taken,” Amode said.
According to him, the defectors’ tenure within the PDP had been lengthy and eventful, characterised by both achievements and setbacks.
He said that most defectors had the privilege of serving the PDP in various capacities, worked for change and did their best for their former party.
He said: “However, after thorough introspection and extensive consultation, we believe it is time to chart a new course.
“This decision has not been made lightly. It reflects our commitment to control our political destinies to serve our people and the loyal supporters who continue to stand by us better.”
Amode said that PDP in Lagos, under the leadership of Mr Philip Aivoji, had been fractured and disunited.
“Poor leadership and a lack of cohesion have cost us dearly.
“Today, I, alongside several former PDP candidates at various levels, national and local government executives, ward leaders, and key stakeholders across Lagos, formally resign from the PDP and align ourselves with the APC.
“We have submitted our letters of resignation to our respective ward chairmen, local government chairmen, and the state leadership of the PDP.”
Amode, who noted that the decision to leave PDP was driven by personal ambition, said it was in the best interest of the defectors.
“We are determined to work with our new partners in the APC to deliver the actual dividends of democracy to every corner of our great state.
Speaking, Alhaja Safurat Abdulkareem, a two-time State PDP Deputy Governorship Candidate, said that the defectors were determined to follow the progressives and improve the state.
Also, Chief Ola Apena, a former state PDP deputy chairman, said the party had no relevance in the state anymore.
“PDP is dead. There is no more PDP. The party is in complete limbo, and we do not know whether it will be up,” he said.
Speaking on behalf of 2023 PDP State House of Assembly Candidates, Mr Ibrahim Balogun, who flew the party’s flag in Kosofe, said he wasted time by staying in PDP for 18 years.
“We will work for Tinubu in 2027. We are going en masse into APC. Jandor is a visionary leader to follow because he is a man of the people,” Balogun said.
Speaking, Adediran congratulated the defectors and said,” We have successfully collapsed the entire structure of the PDP into APC now.
“There is no point in belonging to a political party with no determination and purpose for winning elections. PDP is a social club, and they are not interested in winning.
“Lagos State PDP leadership is ensuring that the party does not win, and the party has been doing this for over two decades now, wasting people’s destinies.
“I congratulate these PDP leaders for joining me in APC. PDP is a sinking ship. In Nigeria of today, there is no other viable platform apart from APC,” Adediran said.
Other PDP leaders who dumped the party for APC included Prince Rufus Adeniyi, a former PDP Assistant State Organising Secretary (Lagos West) and Mr Jerry Afemikhe (Olori Odo), a former PDP House of Representatives Candidate in Surulere Constituency I.
Some 2023 PDP Lagos State House of Assembly candidates who dumped the party included Messrs Keshinro Abiodun (Epe 1), Akeem Jinadu (Eti-Osa 1), and Ibrahim Balogun (Kosofe 2).
Messrs Taofeek Obanikoro (Lagos Island 1); Tunde Pratt (Lagos Mainland 2); Saheed Aregbesola (Oshodi-Isolo State 2), Sulaimon Thompson (Surulere 1)and Taofeek Kuye ( Ajeromi-Ifelodun State 1) also dumped PDP for APC.
Mr Adeyemi Kazeem, former PDP Chairman of Ojo Local Government, and Pastor Gbenga Ogunleye, media aide to the 2023 Lagos PDP Governorship Candidate, were also among those who defected.