9The former Speaker, Ekiti House of Assembly, Mr Tunji Odeyemi, has urged national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to address his grievances within 14 days, over alleged “unjust and unfair treatment” over conduct of the party’s primaries in the state.
Odeyemi, who once acted as a former governor, made his feelings known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Ado-Ekiti.
NAN recalls that Odeyemi was the Speaker, Ekiti House of Assembly and Acting Governor from February 2009 to May 2009.
Odeyemi told NAN that he planned to resign his 22 years membership of PDP, if something urgent was not done by the national body of the party to address his grievances.
He said that his decision to quit the party at the expiration of the ultimatum was due to “unjust and unfair treatment meted out to me in the recent happenings in the party in Ekiti, particularly the recently concluded National Assembly primaries”.
According to him, I have been a loyal party member in the last 22 years.
“Going by the recent developments in the party, particularly in Ekiti, I may have no choice than to pitch tent with another political party, if the party leaders refused to address the perceived injustice,” he said.
Odeyemi said that his denial of the House of Representatives ticket of the party for Ekiti South Federal Constituency II revealed that his loyalty to the PDP has not been valued.
“Since I left the House of Assembly, every agreement the leadership of PDP in Ekiti made with me was never honoured.
“In the just concluded National Assembly primary of PDP, I attempted the House of Representatives ticket for Ekiti South Federal Constituency II.
“The ticket was not just given to another person, but was given to someone who joined the party less than two months to the primary.
“I am using this medium to call on the PDP national leaders, under the Chairmanship of Sen. Iyorchia Ayu, to wade into this matter and correct the anomalies.
“In the next 14 days, if nothing is done to correct the anomalies, I may have no other choice than to resign my membership from PDP.
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“I believe that PDP knows the implications of my leaving at this crucial time that the party is trying its best to rescue the country from its challenges,” Odeyemi said.
He assured the party leadership and other stakeholders that he would remain loyal and supportive to the party and jettison his planned defection, if the grievances could be addressed.
