More troubles for Osun PDP, suspended scribe to sue party

There is no end in sight on the fresh crisis rocking Osun State Chapter of Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) as the suspended secretary of the party, Major Raphel Towobola (rtd), has vowed to challenge his suspension by the party stakeholders in the state.

It was also gathered that about 20 of the 36 local government chairmen of the party have passed a vote of no confidence on the state chairman of the party, Alhaji Ganiyu Olaoluwa.
Sources close to the party said the chairmen took the decision as reprisal over the suspension of Towobola, the secretary of the party.
The State Working Committee of the party had on Monday passed a vote of no confidence on Towobola by suspending him as the secretary of the party, pending the ratification of the action by the congress, which it said, would be convey soon.

The party, in a statement signed by the state publicity secretary of the party, Hon. Bola Ajao, said Towobola was suspended for anti-party activities.

Besides, the Director of Media to one of the governorship aspirants on the platform of the party, Mr. Diran Odeyemi, had told newsmen on Monday that Towobola was suspended for reporting Senator Iyiola Omisore to the police over alleged threat to his life.He said Towobola had breached the party rules by not informing the leadership of the party but chose to report the matter to the police, adding that the action is anti-party.

When contacted, Towobola said insistence on the conduct of primary election ahead of the August 9 governorship election in the state led to his purported suspension from the party.

Towobola, who maintained that he remains the state secretary of the party, said he has not contravened any of the provisions of the constitution of the party to warrant his suspension from the party, adding that his suspension does not have the backing of the State Working Committee of the party.

Towobola, who hails from Ile-Ife with Omisore, said his purported suspension was aimed at excluding him for the party’s primary election slated for April 5.

He said the suspension was his punishment for being neutral in the choice of a governorship candidate of the party, adding that he had insisted that a primary election be conducted contrary to the wish of some leaders of the party in the state.

Towobola said he had no problem with members of his party from the ward to state level, adding that “the whole thing was to frustrate me due to my stand to ensure free and fair primary election to pick the party’s flag bearer.”

He alleged that Omisore had earlier threatened to deal with him for not supporting his governorship ambition.

According to him, “Omisore called me on phone last Wednesday and told me that he saw a petition I wrote to the national secretariat of the party and threatened to deal brutally with me.”

“I reported the verbal threat to the state Commissioner of Police in Osogbo who promised to investigate the matter and the next thing was that the state chairman of the party gave me a letter of suspension at the State Working Committee meeting of the party held on Monday,” he added.

He alleged that his purported suspension from the party was to allow an anointed candidate of the party leaders to emerge as the governorship candidate of the party, stressing that he would challenge his suspension from the party, which he said did not follow due process.