PDP , APC in race to produce replacement for late Senator Adeleke

Security was beefed up in Osogbo, the Osun capital, and Iwo Local Government Area of the state on Wednesday as the All Progressives  Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic (PDP) primaries for Osun-West Senatorial District bye-election got underway.

While APC was holding its primary in Osogbo, PDP convened  its own in Iwo Local Government Area of the state.

Correspondents of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN),  who are  at the venues of the primaries,   report  that there was heavy presence of mobile and regular policemen as well as  officers  of  the Department of  State Security Service and NSCDC.

NAN also reports that Demola Adeleke, the younger brother of late Sen. Isiaka Adeleke, who had been cleared to contest for the primary on the platform of APC, defected to  the PDP  on Tuesday evening.

Sen. Mudashiru Hussein, who was earlier  disqualified but later cleared by the APC National Working Committee,  would now contest the primary unopposed.

Adeleke would also contest the bye-election  unopposed as the other aspirants on the platform  of  PDP all agreed to step down for him.

Both primaries had commenced, with  APC and PDP delegates  already at the venues of both primaries.

NAN recalls  that the Screening Committee of the APC headed by Zamfara House of Assembly Speaker, Sanusi Rikiji, had on Sunday disqualified Hussein for remaining in  active  public service against the stipulated party’s guideline.

According to Rikiji, the party’s   guideline stipulates  that any aspirant that wants to contest an elective office is expected to have resigned from  public service 30 days before the primaries.

The disqualification was upheld by the Appeal Committee of the party headed by Abdulahi Bello.

Hussein, a two-term  House of  Representatives  member and a one-term  senator, took oath of allegiance as commissioner  on May 30 and was given Cabinet Matters portfolio.

The former lawmaker, however,  rejected  the claim of the committee that he had not resigned, saying “I have resigned my position to contest again for the senatorial seat.”

The APC NWC  in Abuja, however,  cleared Hussein for the primary.

The primary was scheduled to hold on  Monday but was shifted till Tuesday to enable the party’s NWC  to study the Screening Committee’s  report.

It was again  shifted to Wednesday.

NAN also reports that  the Independent National Electoral Commission  has  fixed July 8 for the bye-election to fill the vacuum created by the death of Adeleke  on April 23.