Ogun 2023: Governor Abiodun’s Reelection Bid Under Scrutiny as Alleged Past Criminal Offences Surface
- Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun state is currently under immense pressure for reelection as criminal allegations of his past surfaces
- The incumbent governor has been accused of being convicted for fraud-related activities in the United States sometimes in the 80s
- Meanwhile, the governor has denied all the allegations leveled against stating that they do not have statutory grounds to have him disqualified from the governorship race
The reelection bid of Ogun state governor, Dapo Abiodun is in serious doubt as allegation over his past continues to surface on the radar.
According to a Daily Trust report, a petition has been tabled before the national chairman of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu not to field Governor Abiodun as the party flag bearer in the forthcoming polls in Ogun state.
Source: Twitter
The petitioner, Ayodele Oludiran who is also a member of the APC said a possible nomination of the incumbent by the party spells doom and will also tarnish the image and principles of the party following a series of criminal allegations leveled against him.
As gathered by Legit.ng, the said petition was dated Tuesday, April 12 where Oludiran pointed out allegations of crime committed by the governor in the United States sometime in the 80s.
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It was gathered that Abiodun was accused of concealing criminal offenses and that irregularities had also been spotted in the CF001 form he filled in in 2015 and 2019 with the INEC.
Oludiran said Abiodun’s profile contains consistent inconsistencies while making reference to his Form CF001 submitted to INEC in 2015 where he indicated under oath that he attended the Obafemi Awolowo University in 1986.
He also referred to 2019 where he spotted that Abiodun’s Form CF001 submitted to INEC in 2019 does not carry the name of the University.
Allegations against me not enough to disqualify me - Gov Abiodun
Meanwhile, in a response to the petition and allegation, the accused Governor Abiodun has written the chairman of the party stating that he cannot be disqualified from contesting over a mere allegation.
Abiodun who issued his response via his legal team (Afe Babalola &Co) urged Senator Adamu to disregard such claims brought forward to his table.
According to the later, Abiodun stated that all the allegations was a mere tactics to mislead the party and deny him of reelection.
In his response to the accusation of irregularities in his Form CF001 submitted to INEC, Governor Abiodun stated that the allegation can only form the basis of a cause of action in court 14 days from the day the governor filed and deposed to the forms.
He said the allegation cannot be used as a yardstick for disqualification going by the statutory provisions of the law.
He argued that the allegations were status-barred and that the said Forms CF001 does not contain any false statement.
It further said the matter that the Supreme Court of Nigeria had also affirmed the decisions of the Tribunal and the Appeal Court, by dismissing the petition of false statement against the governor.
Also in response to the identity of the governor’s nomenclature, his legal team held that the governor never bore the name Shawn Michael Davis’ as alleged and that he has always been ‘Prince Adedapo Oluseun Abiodun’.
Reacting to his conviction in the United States in the 80s, the legal representative of the governor stated that there’s no court verdict attached to the petition to back the allegation.
Governor Dapo backs VP Osinbajo's 2023 presidential bid
In another development, Governor Dapo Abiodun has drummed his support for the presidential bid of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
Abiodun made his intention to support Osinbajo known when some members of the state executive council accompanied Osinbajo to the palaces of some prominent traditional leaders.
For the governor, his main aim for supporting Osinbajo is to enable him to continue with some laudable projects initiated by President Muhammadu Buhari.
2023: Twitter polls favour Osinbajo as APC preferred aspirant
Meanwhile, if the pulse online is anything to go by this week, VP Osinbajo is the leading favourite to become APC presidential candidate ahead of the 2023 general elections.
This is according to different surveys conducted by organisations on who Nigerians prefer as the candidate of the ruling party.
In terms of raw numbers, the figures released by the pollsters indicate a sampling running into tens of thousands of respondents online.
Source: Legit.ng
