Ondo Speaker Oleyeloogun Bamidele, Chairman of Ifedore local government, Hon. Alex Oladimeji and some chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State are at the risk of being suspended for allegedly not following party guidelines in expressing grievances over the Ward congresses on July 31.
Sources in Ondo APC said the Speaker and other chieftains violated Article 21 of the APC constitution by allegedly sponsoring protest against the party.
Some members of the APC in Ifedore local government area of Ondo State on Tuesday announced they have filed a suit before the Federal High Court seeking nullification of the party’s ward congresses in July.
Defendants in the suit are the APC, Mallam Mai Mala Buni, Mr. Gboyega Isiaka, Mr. Ade Adetimehin, Tunde Fawoyi and the Independent National Electoral Commission.
Claimants in the suit, Mr. Segun Boboyi and Hon Idowu Adebusuyi, are asking for an order setting aside all actions and decisions taken by the Respondents in the Ifedore APC Ward congresses.
They are asking the court to grant an injunction voiding the congresses as according to them, the congress was undemocratic, illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.
The claimants further asked the court to restrain the Respondents from giving effect to the July 31 Ward Congresses in Ifedore local government.
Explaining why they filed the suit, Adebusuyi said they were tired of waiting endlessly for the party leadership to resolve issues arising from the conduct of the congress.
Adebusuyi explained that problems arose from the ward congresses after a consensus list submitted by those he termed majority of APC leaders in Ifedore was substituted.
He mentioned Speaker Oleyeloogun as among majority of APC leaders in Ifedore that submitted the list allegedly rejected.
“We were surprised that a list written by few leaders was accepted and ours was dropped.
“We cried to the Governor and he referred us to the Deputy Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa. After three days, he took us to the party secretariat but no issue was resolved,” he said.
An APC chieftain from Ifedore and former Special Adviser to Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu on Transportation, Tobi Ogunleye, accused Speaker Oleyeloogun and the claimants of attempting to hijack the ward congresses.
Ogunleye said the directive was for ward leaders to generate a consensus list of party executives without interference.
He said the party accepted the consensus list that was gotten from a process that followed laid down rules and procedure.
The Nation could not reach Speaker Oleyeloogun for comments on phone.
