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The city of Ibadan on Sunday literally stood still for the
newly formed All Progressive Congress (APC) as the erstwhile parties which made
up the party lowered their flags to usher in the new party.
The Mapo Hall venue of the rally was thronged by a mammoth
crowd of party faithful from the three defunct parties and the ordinary folks,
all dressed in t-shirts specially designed for the new party, holding broom
which is the symbol of APC.
Party leaders such as Chief Michael Adeniyi Koleoso, Dr.
Omololu Olunloyo, Senator Ayo Adeseun, Chief Akin Oke, secretaries and
executive members of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), All Nigeria Peoples
Party (ANPP) and Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) were also in attendance.
All the major roads and streets, as well as all the adjoining
streets leading to Mapo Hall, were jam-packed, with h eavy vehicular and human
traffic.
Governor Abiola Ajimobi, while speaking at the rally thanked
party leaders and all the progressives who came together to form APC, saying
that the birth of the party had signified a red card for the ruling Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) in Nigeria.
Besides, he said that the coming of APC also signified an
end to poverty, corruption, violence and other omen which the ruling PDP
represents in the country.
He also congratulated the people of Oyo State for their
support and cooperation with his government, stressing that with the coming up
of APC, they should expect more development in the state.
Governor Ajimobi urged members of the three merging parties
to eschew rancor and bitterness but rather work together to ensure success for
the new party in all future elections.
Also speaking, Chief Koleoso, who had recently been reported
in the media to have had political issues with the governor, stressed the need
for party members to ensure unity and harmony within the party and that they
should give maximum support to the Ajimobi administration in order to ensure
more dividends of democracy for the state.
He said that the people of the state had not made the
mistake voting for Ajimobi in 2011, given his brilliant performance and the
all-round development of the state through massive infrastructural revolution
and urban renewal programme.
The Acting Chairman of the defunct CPC, Mr. Layi Okanlawon
commended the idea behind the rally and said that the APC would be a party to
bear.
“CPC is lucky to join the moving train. I believe we are
heading towards a huge success. We are moving together as a party. We have
experienced people handling the affairs of the APC and we have confidence in
them,” he said.
On the issue of some members who issued an earlier release
dissociating themselves from the rally, he said the decision was not
representative of the generality of the party as other party leaders were not
consulted for the boycott of the rally.
“The various problems confronting the nation such as lack of
water, unemployment, electricity would soon be a thing of the past,” the
governor said.
A former commissioner and PDP chieftain, Mr. Morounkola
Thomas, who also attended the rally, also commended the APC.
“This is the beginning of the end of Nigeria’s problems. All
the problems that have become almost intractable for the present government to
solve in Nigeria, there will be an end to such problems with the coming on
board of the APC,” he said.
