Dr. Olajide Adediran has emerged the flag bearer and governorship candidate of the Lagos State Peoples Democratic Party, having polled 679 votes, defeating the only contender Mr. David Kolawole Vaughan (Dakova) who polled 20 votes.
Mr. Adediran was declared winner of the election by the Lagos PDP Chairman Electoral Committee/Returning Officer Mr. Emmanuel Ogidi, who disclosed that 709 adhoc delegates were accredited for the primaries at the end of which 10 votes were voided.
He also affirmed that a total of 775 adhoc delegates were expected at the primaries.
Ogidi said: “The total number of accredited voters is 709, and Olajide Adediran got 679 votes, DAKOVA (David Kolawole Vaughan had 20 and we had 10 voided votes.
“I want to thank all of you for your patience and I want to congratulate the two contestants for showing the spirit of sportsmanship, especially DAKOVA. He is a true sportsman.
“Having satisfied all the requirements in our guidelines, I want to announce Dr Olajide Adediran as our candidate after scoring the highest votes of 679. He is hereby declared the winner and returned elected.”
He made the declaration at the party’s primaries held in the Haven event hall Ikeja, where delegates from 20 local governments of the state all came to cast their votes for the aspirant they support.
Earlier before the commencement of the primaries, sunrise.ng reports that four aspirants out of the six contenders jostling to be the PDP guber candidate withdrew from the race, alleging that the list of delegates was skewed to favour a particular aspirant.
The four contenders are; Otunba Olanrewaju Jim-Kamal,Engineer Adedeji Doherty,Dr.Ade Dosunmu and Mr.Gbadebo Rhodes Vivour.
Prior to the announcement of result,Ogidi said that delegates from Ajeromi-Ifelodun Local Government failed to cooperate with the committee over an alleged discrepancies on the delegates list for which reason they were refused accreditation.
He however, commended the aspirants and delegates for their patience and good conduct and exhibition of true spirit of sportsmanship throughout the process.
“I want to thank all of you for your patience and I want to congratulate the two contestants for showing the spirit of sportsmanship, especially DAKOVA. He is a true sportsman,” Ogidi said.
In his victory speech, Adediran appreciated the capacity and doggedness of other aspirants that stepped down for him and Dakova who stood till the very end, noting that everyone of them have what it takes to govern the state as he pledged his resolve to face the All Progressives Congress (APC) headlong at the poll.
“I want to appreciate all leaders not minding their different tendencies. Now we have a project that address our common priority that is winning Lagos.
“Myself and all other aspirants who joined me in this race, I say it again all of us are competent enough to be the Governor of Lagos State.
“Let me specially appreciate my brother here, Dakova thank you very much indeed for being the last man standing.
“When I joined the Peoples Democratic Party I heard about different tendencies but you know what, each time I visit every leader of each the tendencies they will say to me Jandor don get the ticket.
“Chief Ibiyinka Olabode George is our leader, all of them says this, even up until this afternoon so I’m also using this opportunity to salute him and to thank everybody who has been working alongside him till this moment.
Now we have a project at hand I promise you,I am going to use this ticket to unite Lagos PDP so that we can win Lagos for PDP, from today till the 29th May 2023, when air will be sworn in as Governor of the state.
“ I will carry this PDP flag with pride, not just a PDP ticket, it is a ticket for the entire Lagosians.
“It is a ticket for the soul of the state of Lagos, this is a ticket for our total emancipation, it is a ticket make Lagos work for all irrespective of where you come from.
“This is a ticket that will produce the very first independent governor of the state of Lagos, this is a ticket that will ensure we have a Governor that will not require second level approval before he gets something done.
“Finally let me thank our leaders at the national and especially our Chairman Professor Iyorchia Ayu, we know have a big task ahead of us, I do know that I have an herculean task of winning Lagos for PDP and I believe it is not something I can do all by myself.
“Just like I promised other aspirants this afternoon that the very first meeting I’m going to be having will be within all of us the aspirants and now the candidate.
“We will sit together because in all of them resides great ideas and best brains that we need to tap from to get to where we are going and by his grace in 2023 Lagos is swinging to PDP,” Dr. Olajide said.
Also accepting defeat, Vaughan said that he jostled for the party’s ticket with a clearly mapped out strategies to transform the state.
He promised to support and back Adediran’s ambition with everything he had.
Consequently Adediran stands battle ready to take on whoever the APC puts forward at polls.
