Former federal commissioner of the National Population Commission (NPC), Hon. Diran Iyantan, has called on the national secretariat of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to adopt the direct mode of primary election to select the governorship candidate of the party in Ondo State.
Iyantan said the direct primary would achieve transparency, fairness and inclusiveness for the party ahead of the November 16, 2024 governorship election.
Iyantan, who is a governorship aspirant under the platform of the APC, made the call while briefing journalists on his intention to run for the governorship seat of the state.
Iyantan said, “There are three options but I am adequately prepared. For people who are desperate to monetize the system, they have to be clamoring for an indirect primary so that the highest bidder can emerge.
“This is unacceptable to us in the politics of the state. We want more participation of the people in determining who represents them and the flag of the party.
“I am pursuing the option of a direct primary where every card-carrying member of the party will be eligible to participate in choosing who flags the flag of the party and I can tell you emphatically that our leaders who are great democrats are favourably disposed to this option.”
While saying that he was not anointed by the late Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu as other aspirants had claimed, Iyantan said, “I can tell you emphatically that I have not been anointed by anybody, except God who anointed me. I don’t want anybody to be intimidated by the size of anyone. The aggression of a lion of a lion, but the race is not for the swift.”
His words, “I am the oldest among all the contestants from the southern senatorial district because, among all the people running for this office, I am the only person that was around in 1999 and participated actively in the progressive march since 1999. Others join after that time. All these factors qualified me to be the flag bearer of the party.’’
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