Ekiti 2018: APC shouldn’t rely on federal might to win – Osinkolu

A senatorial aspirant in Ekiti State All Progressives Congress(APC), Dr. Olusegun Osinkolu, has advised the party not to rely on federal might to win the 2018 governorship poll.
Osinkolu, said the party must conduct credible primary and embark on aggressive mobilization drive to be able to defeat the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP).

Speaking in Ado Ekiti, on Tuesday, Osinkolu disclosed that the APC lost the 2014 governorship poll despite being in control in Ekiti, saying it would be foolhardy for the party to rest its winning streak on federal might while leaving other strategic things undone.
He reminded the party that the PDP under Dr Goodluck Jonathan failed to defeat Governor Rauf Aregbesola in Osun State in the 2014 poll, because of his popularity and connection with the grassroots, urging the party to take a cue from that political experience that federal might doesn’t guarantee automatic victory.
The senatorial aspirant appealed to party members, particularly the governorship aspirants, who are now over 40 to be committed to the party, saying the huge number was enough to strengthen the party if they display uncommon loyalty and dedication to APC before the poll.

“APC may end up meeting its waterloo if it relies on federal might. It failed in Osun State against governor Aregbesola and that was suffice
to say that federal might will become irrelevant and unhelpful when a bad candidate is fielded for an election.

“The federal might is like a good advertisement for any candidate in any credible election, because such huge potentials can be deployed to market the candidate. But when you present a bad candidate, then the advert becomes useless , because no good advert can sell a bad candidate.
“That is why our leaders must build internal democracy. They must allow it to grow and thrive , so that every member can have a say in who is the best for a particular election.

“Ekiti electorate are very sophisticated and sensitive and past elections had lent credence to that . I want to appeal to the National Working Committee to allow a free, fair and credible primary, this is the only thing that can save us, no other magic.
“The moment the people of Ekiti sees that a particular candidate was imposed, then they will revolt against him , because an average Ekiti person hates cheating under any guise”, Osinkolu warned.
He appealed to the aspirants to pursue their aspirations with civility and work with the State Working Committee to build a party that will be acceptable to Ekiti people.
“Let there be civility in their utterances and conducts to prevent anarchy. The moment the party starts showing signs of incoherence , then there could be apathy which the PDP can catch on to defeat us again and this is a banana peel we must avoid for us to bounce back again.
“No Ekiti man will be proud of this maladministration we are witnessing now. The only option left for Ekiti is to work with APC and once we miss the opportunity, then it becomes an albatross to all of us and the future generations”, he said.