The Southwest Zonal Leader of Accord, Mogaji Igbinsola Sunday Paul, has dismissed allegations linking a governorship aspirant of the party in Oyo state, Oriyomi Hamzat, to the disruption of the screening exercise for house of assembly aspirants.
The state leadership of the party, led by Chairman Prince Kolade Ojo and Secretary Hon. Olayinka Dairo, had earlier accused Hamzat of sponsoring suspected political thugs who allegedly disrupted the screening exercise held on Wednesday at Grand Serene Hotel, Ibadan.
In a statement released on Thursday, the party leadership condemned the disruption, describing it as an act of violence and disrespect to the party hierarchy. The leadership also alleged that female hotel staff were assaulted and properties vandalised during the incident.
The statement warned Hamzat against what it described as “politics of bitterness, violence and disrespect,” insisting that no aspirant is superior to the party.
However, reacting to the allegations, Mogaji Igbinsola Sunday Paul, who is also one of the state leaders of the party, strongly refuted the claims, describing them as false, misleading and politically motivated.
According to him, Oriyomi Hamzat has never been associated with violence or thuggery, stressing that the accusations were an attempt to tarnish the image of the governorship aspirant.
He explained that the crisis surrounding the screening exercise was caused by alleged irregularities and manipulation in the process.
Mogaji Igbinsola noted that concerns were raised over the unusually high number of aspirants contesting for the 32 House of Assembly seats in the state, alleging that huge sums were collected as expression of interest and screening fees amid attempts to favour selected aspirants.
He further disclosed that he appealed to the National Working Committee of the party in Abuja to suspend the exercise over lack of transparency, a move which reportedly led to the postponement of the screening.
According to him, arrangements were subsequently made for the exercise to continue at an undisclosed location to ensure fairness, transparency and peace among party members.
The zonal leader also stated that Oriyomi Hamzat and fellow governorship aspirant, Owoseni Fatai Ajani, have remained committed to the growth and unity of the party, while pursuing their ambitions in line with the constitution and guidelines of the party.
He added that several party stakeholders had continued to express concerns over alleged internal manipulations capable of weakening the party ahead of future elections.
Mogaji Igbinsola therefore urged members of the public to disregard the allegations against Hamzat and focus on what he described as the real issues affecting the credibility of the screening exercise.
