The decision of the National Leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to annoint a former President of the Nigeria Bar Association, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu, as the party’s candidate for the Ondo State governorship election, has split the party.
The youth wing of the party, operating under the aegis of Sunshine Liberation Front, has spurned the decision to annoint Akeredolu as the party’s candidate, faulting the process that led to his emergence.
The youths, according to their Director of Publicity, Segun Odidi, said the process that threw up Akeredolu amounted to imposition, threatening to fight it to the very end.
Odidi said with the manner he emerged, Akeredolu will remain a candidate of Lagos State, adding: “The choice of Akeredolu from Lagos amounts to imposition of candidate and the SLF is not going to be part that arrangement.
“We reject totally the choice of Akeredolu as this cannot lead the party to anywhere.
“For obvious reasons, the SLF has in the last one year been putting machinery in motion and we have been working tirelessly to ensure that the ACN wins the coming governorship election in the state, but our morale was dampened with this kind of choice.
“It is a known fact that Akeredolu is alien to the politics of Ondo State.
“The people of the state do not know him.
“He himself does not know the people needed to win election in the state.
“Akeredolu is a political neophyte.
“The leadership of the party has jettisoned those who worked to build the party and opted for somebody that cannot win in his ward.”
Among those the youths feel should have been considered are Dr. Olu Agunloye, Prof. Ajayi Boroffice and Saka Lawal.
They, however, said they were still studying the situation before deciding what action to take.
Odidi urged members of the youth wing of the ACN to remain calm until a position is taken on the matter.