• I have no case to answer – Osuntokun

The suspended Labor Party Publicity Secretary Abayomi Arabambi has criticized Tuesday’s appointment of Akin Osuntokun as Director General of Obi-Datti’s Presidential Campaign Council.

Arabambi, who revealed that Obi’s new campaign manager is the senatorial candidate for the Zenith Labor Party representing the central Ekiti district, accused him of being fraudulent and deceitful.

But Osuntokun opposed the accusation, saying that he was not a member of the ZLP and never had the mentioned senatorial ambition as was speculated.

Former political adviser to former president Olusegun Obasanjo was announced as the new campaign helmsman in Abuja during a strategic meeting of the LP candidates and the party’s National Working Committee.

Osuntokun replaced the former director general of the Obi-Datti Campaign Organization, Doyin Okupe, who announced his resignation in a letter last Tuesday following a ruling by the Federal High Court in Abuja that convicted him of violating the Money Laundering Act.

But Arabambi maintained that Osuntokun’s appointment was obtained with “fraudulent intent, mischief, distortion and suppression of facts,” an act he described as an insult to the collective integrity of Nigerians.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the party’s suspended image-maker revealed that Osuntokun could not be trusted for such a position as a result of several factors, including “divided loyalty, deliberate misrepresentation and political offence.”

To defend his claim, Arabambi urged our correspondent to obtain a list from the Independent National Electoral Commission containing the names of the candidates for the 2023 elections.

According to him, Osuntokun is still the ZLP senatorial candidate for the central Ekiti district.

The ZLP’s presidential candidate is Dan Nwanyanwu, who also serves as the party’s national chairman.

Arabambi said: “In the newly approved INEC list of candidates for the National Assembly elections, the name and details of Akin Osuntokun were there, and this shows that he is a member of the ZLP and also its candidate for the National Assembly.

“According to the available record, the ZLP has its own presidential candidate and vice-presidential candidate. So how will he be running our party’s campaign from another party?

“We are also certain that Akin Osuntokun has not resigned from the ZLP, nor has he obtained a court order from a court of competent jurisdiction to remove his name from the INEC list, since the 90-day period allowed for substitution has expired. of candidates by political parties. .

“Currently, he is the central senatorial candidate for Ekiti of the Zenith Labor Party, which means he will run against Peter Obi and the LP on February 25, 2023. So what interest will he serve on the Presidential Campaign Council?

“The LP’s costly mistake of choosing Osuntokun from among a number of eminently qualified and dedicated Party members can have a devastating effect on the victory of our candidate, His Excellency Peter Obi and Ahmed Datti, if we don’t act. now.

“For some of us who are up to our necks in making sure we have a new Nigeria under Peter Obi as president, we will have no choice but to seek legal means to remove Akin Osuntokun as campaign manager if he fails to launch the towel within four days. Enough of having all these questionable characters involved in the affairs of our party.”

Meanwhile, the findings of the punch confirmed Arabambi’s claim that Osuntokun was indeed listed as a Senate candidate for the 2023 election.

At number 392 on page 57 of the INEC register was the name ‘Osuntokun Olusola Akintola’, representing Ekiti Central on the ZLP platform.

When asked for a reaction, Osuntokun told our correspondent that the issue was irrelevant.

He said: “That is a redundant topic. I have left the ZLP. Actually, it was the Constitution that I wrote. Dan Nwanyanwu was the chairman of the Labor Party (Zenith). It was at his insistence that I joined the party because I thought it was the Labor Party.

“That was until I found out it was the Zenith Labor Party. So I’m not a ZLP member anyway. That’s why I say it’s a redundant topic. It has no consequence.

Asked if he had quashed his dream of pursuing a senatorial career on the ZLP platform, Osuntokun said he did not upgrade or push for the position ab initio.

“Of course, I never took it in the first instance. You can go and check the case for yourself. You can even ask ZLP leaders Nwanyanwu who is the president,” he said.