Fourteen registered political parties in Osun State on Monday elected a new nine-member executive committee for a faction of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) during a meeting held in Osogbo, the state capital, as disagreements over the leadership of the council continue ahead of the governorship election.
The election was conducted through affirmation in the presence of representatives of the participating political parties. At the end of the exercise, Tosin Odeyemi of the Democratic Leadership Alliance (DLA) emerged as chairman, while Prof. Adigun Adepeju of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) became deputy chairman.
Other officers elected include Araoye Kazeem of the Action Alliance as secretary, Adesuyi Olufemi of the Zenith Labour Party as publicity secretary, Mustapha Muideen of the Labour Party as treasurer, Dr. Gbenga Afeni of the National Rescue Movement as organising secretary, Waheed Adediran of the All Progressives Congress as legal adviser, Tayo Adeyemi of the African Action Congress as financial secretary and Adebayo Olasunkanmi of the Allied Peoples Movement as deputy secretary.
Representatives of several political parties, including the Action Democratic Party, Nigeria Democratic Congress, All Progressives Grand Alliance, Social Democratic Party and National Democratic Party, were present at the exercise, which was supervised by an electoral committee headed by Ezekiel Ayoola of the National Democratic Party.
Speaking after the election, Odeyemi said the decision to form a new executive followed what he described as the inability of the national leadership of IPAC to fill vacant positions in the Osun chapter. He said the situation had created uncertainty at a time political parties needed a recognised platform to engage with stakeholders ahead of the governorship election.
According to him, 16 of the 22 registered political parties in the state supported the move after consultations. He added that the parties decided to act to prevent the council from remaining inactive and promised that the new leadership would serve as a link between political parties, the electorate and other stakeholders while protecting the interests of member parties.
The development comes amid an ongoing leadership dispute within Osun IPAC. Some political parties had earlier rejected the appointment of a caretaker committee headed by Odesola Oluseye Titus of the All Peoples Party.
The caretaker committee was inaugurated on the same day and called on political parties in the state to put aside their differences ahead of the governorship election. Speaking during the inauguration, Oluseye urged political stakeholders to work together in the interest of peaceful participation and a credible electoral process, saying unity among political parties would strengthen democracy in Osun State.