By Ayobami Ife, Abeokuta
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun State has called on the defeated People’s Democratic Party’s candidate in the last governorship election, Ladi Adebutu, to return to Nigeria and face criminal charges filed against him instead of turning himself to a “big bundle of contradictions.”
In a statement signed by the State Assistant Publicity Secretary of APC, Ogunsanya Olusola Blessed, the party begged Ladi Adebutu to “please come back home and face his criminal charges because he cannot run forever.”
The statement read further: “We do not wish to join issues with Adebutu on his baseless petition against the duly elected Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun, but only to advise him to return home to face pending criminal charges against him and his cohorts.
‘Medical check-up’ cannot be forever, just as he cannot run away forever from the law.
“At one point, the fugitive said his life “was being threatened”, at another point his lawyers, Ehi Uwaifoh and Co, wrote on May 2, 2023 to the police acknowledging police invitation to Adebutu to interact with the police same May 2, 2023. Surprisingly, as at yesterday, in some publications, the bundle of contradictions said he ‘was never invited by the police.’
Ijo Uwaifoh and Co in its letter dated May 2, 2023 and addressed to the police wrote that: “we act for and represent Hon. Ladi Adebutu and it’s on his instruction and behalf that we write you as follows: Our Client was informed on Saturday April 29, 2023 that he has a letter of invitation from your office inviting him for May 2, 2023.
Prior to the delivery of your letter, our client has left the country for his Medicals and his return date is dependent on his doctors.
“That is the same Adebutu, now at large, attempting to mislead the public via their pliable media smatterings that he was never invited by the police. He is nothing but a fugitive running away from the law. Ogun State would have become a laughing stock if an incompetent character like Adebutu had become Governor!
“In the Reply he filed in response to our pleadings at the Tribunal, he falsely claimed he has never been invited for questioning by any law enforcement agency. Yet he is in court against the AGF and others and in the processes filed, he exhibited a letter of invitation! This is even enough to convict him for perjury!
“We call on the PDP to demonstrate obedience to the laws of the land, by persuading its defeated candidate, Ladi Adebutu, to come back home and face his criminal trial and stop blabbing from self-imposed exile.”
Rather than blame others for his travails, he should be manly enough to take advantage of the opportunity offered to him by the law to answer to the charges. He alone decided, on the 27th of February to apply to Zenith Bank for the issuance of the 200,000 cards. He alone, beginning from the 6th of March 2023, started to take delivery of the cards from his account officer. He alone, on the 16th and 17th of March 2023, on the eve of the Gubernatorial elections, decided to fund the 200,000 cards with the sum of 10,000 Naira each from his personal account at Zenith Bank! These were the same cards he distributed, through his agents, some of whom were arrested, to voters on Election Day! Neither Governor Dapo Abiodun nor bthe APC asked, aided or encouraged him to do any of these things. So why blame others now for his fool-hardiness?
“APC as a law abiding party will use all possible legal means not only to defend the mandate given to His Excellency, Prince Dapo Abiodun, by the good people of Ogun State, but will also ensure all those who flouted electoral laws are held accountable for their actions so as to serve as deterrent to others who in the future might be tempted to tread the same ignoble path.”
But responding, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the March 18 governorship poll, Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu who through his media aide, Mr. Afolabi Orekoya, asked the Ogun APC to stop chasing shadows and putting him out for media trial.
He urged the party, members and its candidate to go defend their mandate at the Tribunal.
“Are they the ones to fix time table for him? Let them go defend the mandate they claimed that they have. Let them go defend the mandate. Who is disturbing them from defending it? That is what we have been asking them to do and stop the media trial they are doing.
“They should defend the mandate and stop the media trial. That is what is important. They should not leave the main issue and start chasing shadows about,” he said.
