Ondo state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has rejected the appointment of Kolade Akinjo as the state representative on the governing board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
It would be recalled that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had, on Tuesday, approved the appointment of the board members and a management team for the NDDC, where Akinjo was named the Ondo representative.
However, while reacting to the development, the APC party leaders alleged that Akinjo was a member of the House of Representatives on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who worked for the opposition during the general elections.
In a statement by Alex Kalejaye, Ondo APC publicity secretary, the leaders said appointing Akinjo could “demoralise” APC members who significantly contributed to the ruling party’s success during the elections.
The statement reads, “We concede to Mr. President the right to appoint any qualified Nigerian to any office, having given him the popular mandate to preside over our affairs.”
“We only wish to remind Your Excellency that Mr. Kolade Victor Akinjo was the House of Representatives candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) during the presidential election, having served two terms on the opposition party’s platform.
“It is equally pertinent to aver that while Mr President’s desire to instil all-inclusive governance for the good of the people, we doubt if anyone who worked assiduously for his party, the PDP, as well as his presidential candidate, Abubakar Atiku, on the potency of anti-APC sloganeering, fits better than our teeming members for the plum job.
“It is, therefore, our fear that appointing such a man into an influential position could demoralise our members, particularly in Ilaje/Ese-Odo Federal Constituency, who contributed immensely to the overall votes from the Sunshine State.
“We have no doubt, in the circumstance, that Mr President will revisit the nomination of Akinjo as the Ondo State Representative on the NDDC’s Governing Board and bring on board someone known to have worked for the party.”
The party leaders commended Tinubu for appointing Ifedayo Abegunde as the NDDC executive director of corporate services while appealing to him to take a second look at Akinjo’s appointment to avoid the unpleasant situation of “Monkey dey work, Baboon dey chop”.