Oyo-born financial and tax consultant, Chief Bisi Ilaka, has said that despite the defection of the former governor Rashidi Ladoja of Oyo State from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, the party in the state still remains strong.
According to Ilaka who is eyeing Oyo Central Senatorial seat, Ladoja and other former PDP members are mere travelers.
Ladoja had last week joined the newly formed African Democratic Congress, ADC.
Ilaka, who is the Ladilu of Oyo Town, spoke with journalists in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
Ilaka explained that “All the chairmen who won for Accord Party in 2011 are all still in the PDP. The team still remains formidable. Yes, people have left here and there. They will be replaced with competent hands, other people had come on board. There are capable hands everywhere to replace them.
“Kunmi Mustapha remains in the party. He is not going anywhere. His deputy also remains in the party. Most of the executives remain.
“One thing politician has to learn is crisis management because in politics there will always be crisis. There is no perfection anywhere. I’m of the view that certain people including former governor Ladoja and his co-travellers, most of them, I don’t think their intentions are sincere or pure.
They are in need of what they can gain or what they think they can gain. Because if they are not as selfish and self-centered as I think they are, they would have thought about the greater good.” he said.
When asked why he did not follow Ladoja to join the ADC, Ilaka said that his victory at the poll is not tied with associating with Ladoja. Hence, he can win the seat without Ladoja or any iconic-political affliation.
“The last election. I come from Oyo now, we won between 34/36 out of the 40 wards in Oyo. They were not voting for Ladoja. They were voting for me. Yes, I know it was a collective efforts but the operators or politicians in political parties are less than one percent of the electorate. What matters is what the electorates think. Is Ladoja’s name on the ballot with mine? It is not. Where we perceived he might have a major impact would have been what they call Ibadan main or less city. In Oyo, they knew Ilaka was contesting and whatever party Ilaka was contesting they were voting for him. In Ibadan, it was a little bit different. Some people will say we suffered from the tsunami effect of Buhari or whatever.” he added.
When asked about the chances of the PDP in the forthcoming 2019 general elections, he noted that the problem with the party in the 2011 election was lack of internal democracy and the presentation of poor candidates which the party has identified
“PDP didn’t do well last time because it has poor and hopeless candidates and the people totally rejected them. If they had had better candidates, electorates will applaud and endorse them. Candidates were imposed and handpicked and people left. If there is proper participatory democracy in the party, then we stand a good chance”.
Ilaka also said that when the clouds in the horizon of the new party they all ran to strikes, they will all learn their lessons.
“I’m sure when the clouds in the horizon get stricken by thunderstorms. They will be many things to write about.”
