OYEGUN: TINUBU’S CORRUPTION ALLEGATION PERSONALLY INSULTING, BASELESS, RECKLESS

The crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) following the outcome of the Ondo guber primaries is taking a turn albeit for the worse as the National Chairman of the Party, Chief John Odigie Oyegun has finally reacted to the allegations levelled against him by one of the party's National Leader and former governor of Lagos state, Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu.

 While describing the allegations against him as "reckless and false", the National Chairman who answered the allegations against him in a blow by blow account, said it was now time to set the records straight inview of the misinformation that had been fed to the public.

Oyegun, in a statement he personally signed and issued yesterday, which was made available to newsmen in Abuja, further stated that "The ripples from the controversy over the election have unfortunately dragged our great party on to the front pages of newspapers for the wrong reasons.

According to him "In view of the misinformation and false reports that have been fed to the media and that have pervaded the public space, there is need to set the records straight. Below are factual responses to the salient points and allegations made by the media office of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in its statement.

He said "Recently, the media office of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu falsely and recklessly accused me of corruption, rigging the outcome of the 2016 Ondo State APC governorship election primaries and overruling the Party's National Working Committee (NWC) "vote" on the 2016 Ondo State APC Governorship Primary Election Appeal Committee Report.

Oyegun who took time to counter all the allegations brought against him by Tinubu explained thus "The media office of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in its statement alleged that I overruled the NWC's vote of "six against five" in favour of cancelling the primary election results and conducting another primary.

Reacting to the allegation of bribery and corruption against him he snapped thus "This reckless and baseless corruption allegation levelled against me is unfortunate and an insult to my person and my hard-earned reputation which I have strongly maintained. Nobody has the kind of money that can buy my conscience or make me do injury to an innocent man. In all the primaries conducted under my watch as National Chairman, I have strived to ensure a free, fair, transparent and credible process. The 2016 Ondo State APC Governorship Primary Election was not an exception. There must be internal democracy in the Party and our constitution must be respected by all.

Oyegun said what actually happen was that "According to the minutes of the 18th emergency meeting of the APC NWC held from Monday 19th September 2016 to Thursday 22nd September, 2016 at the Party's National Secretariat in Abuja, there was absolutely no meeting which I chaired that voted in the manner alleged. Clearly, the report on which the media office of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu acted was a figment of someone's wild imagination.

The party chairman further explained that "On Thursday 22nd September, 2016 being the final day for submission of candidate by Political Parties, the NWC discussed the possibility of voting having finished deliberation on the2016 Ondo State APC Governorship Primary Election Appeal Committee Report because members in support of cancelling the Primary results were still strident in their position.

Countering the allegation of tampering with the delegate list Oyegun said "The Ondo State approved delegates list was compiled in strict compliance with the Party's constitution. Only qualified delegates were included in the list. Moreso, none of the aspirants or the Appeal Committee has submitted to NWC a list of delegates who were not qualified to be included in the delegates list but were listed as delegates or presumed qualified delegates who were not included in the delegates list used for the Primary.

Oyegun while appealing to party faithfuls to remain calm irrespective of the distraction from the affirmed that ""It needs to be stated categorically that the NWC is confident that the Chairman of the Ondo State APC Governorship Primary Election Committee, H.E. Abubakar Badaru, Executive Governor of Jigawa State conducted a credible and exemplary exercise. We indeed commend the Governor and his team for their transparency and the free and fair manner the primaries was conducted.