The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Lagos got messier today when the party’s governorship candidate in the last election, Jimi Agbaje took a swipe at the party’s leader in the state, Chief Olabode George for insinuating that he had defected.
Agbaje said the insinuations that he had defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) remained “the concoctions of a sick mind”.
But Chief George, in a chat with our correspondent, denied the allegation that he was behind the insinuation of his defection, saying he was not perturbed whether Agbaje was leaving or remaining in the party as he was not adding any value to the party.
He also warned the former governorship candidate to watch his language, saying he and Agbaje were not age mates.
Agbaje’s Director of Media and Publicity, Felix Oboagwina, in a statement, said his purported defection should be discountenanced, describing it as a “misinformation”.
The former PDP Governorship Candidate said he had never been a member of APC and talks of his “returning” to the ruling party had never crossed his mind.
He said: “That false narrative is the product of a sick mind. Or how else do you describe someone who just sits down to concoct fiction and markets it as reality? He should tell the world where he got the news being spread round.
“These shameless party leaders have 2023 in mind. The game-plan is mischievously simple: Give the dog a bad name and chase it away from the party. By 2023, this mudslinging will have scared off credible people from the party, which will leave the whole field to them to continue to corner party resources.
“I am too big to sneak out of one party into another one. And the reality remains that I have not left PDP for any other party, least of all, APC.”
He stated that George, in the past, clashed with former PDP chieftains who tried to contribute towards elevating the party but ended up frustrated, including the Late Funso Williams, Muhammed Muritala Ashorobi, Musiliu Obanikoro, Moshood Salvador, Rahman Owokoniran, Femi Pedro and Remi Adiukwu.
However, George is insisting that Agbaje came to reap where he did not sow and warned him to stop dragging his name into the mud, saying he deserved respect.
He said: “Who did I tell that he (Agbaje) has left the PDP? Who cares whether he has left or not? Of what value is he in the party? He should be careful opening his mouth to talk or refer to me. I am not his mate in all ramifications. Why should I take the issue of his defection or membership of the party as something important to me? Where was he when we founded the party? I regard that statement as disrespectful. This is the height of indiscipline. Let him shut up his mouth”.
