By Ayodele Oni
Former Governor of Ondo state, Dr Olusegun Mimiko belongs to the group that is clamouring for resignation of the national chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Iyorcha Ayu, to pave way for a southerner.
The group, being championed by River state Governor, Nyesome Wike is insisting that Ayu’s resignation is a precondition to support the presidential ambition of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
Members of the group that were nominated as part of the campaign team of Atiku have either rejected it outrightly or boycotted programmes of the team.
List of campaign members of Ondo state was released on Tuesday with Dr Mimiko as a member and this has generated reactions from the political group of the former Governor.
The former Governor has however reacted to his inclusion in the presidential campaign team, saying he was not consulted before his nomination.
A statement on Wednesday by his media aide, John Paul Akinduro stated that “Dr Olusegun Mimiko has been inundated with calls and messages from the general public, and his political friends and concerned individuals around the nation; and in particular, his teeming supporters across the length and breadth of Ondo State.
“They are seeking clarity on a fake news making the rounds since yesterday that he had ditched Governors Nyesom Wike, Seyi Makinde and their colleagues governors, and abandoned the agitation for regional equity within the PDP; and in particular, making a party member of southern extraction its the national chairman before the 2023 election.
“The report and the list that triggered it, are fake and a deliberate attempt to muddle things up and smear Dr. Olusegun Mimiko.
“It must be stated with emphasis that Dr. Mimiko was neither consulted by anyone nor consented to his inclusion in any Ondo state PDP Presidential Campaign Council list.
“For the avoidance of doubt and to set the record straight, Dr Mimiko is unwavering in his commitment to the principle of equity, fairness and justice through which he believes a credible push for a PDP victory is possible.
“He fully subscribes to the agitation by his colleagues and other stakeholders in PDP and the generality of Nigerians that the PDP structure must reflect Nigeria’s diversity, if it genuinely wants to unify a visibly divided country.”
 Iyorcha Ayu, to pave way for a southerner. The former Governor has however reacted to his inclusion in the presidential campaign team, saying he was not consulted before his nomination.){kind=link}