The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos, Abdul-Azeez Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, has made multiple claims bordering on the governorship bid of Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour (GRV), the candidate of the Labour Party (LP).
In an interview on Arise TV, Jandor was questioned on the aftermath of the 2023 Lagos gubernatorial election, where Rhodes-Vivour came second to Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who was declared re-elected.
Speaking on the attempts by him and his party to challenge the candidacy of other candidates in the March 18 poll, Jandor said; “Rhodes-Vivour claimed under oath that he joined the Labour Party on the 18th of June. However, on the 19th of June, the same Architect Rhodes-Vivour wrote a letter signed by him on his letterhead to be the Deputy Governorship candidate of PDP on the 19th of June”.
“On the 22nd of June, the same Rhodes-Vivour went to Wadata house which is the PDP national secretariat, to be part of the screening exercise for the Deputy governorship candidate,” he added.
He further stated that section 65 of the Nigerian constitution states that for someone to be sponsored by a political party, he must be a member of that party for him to run.
Jandor added that a candidate cannot be a member of two political parties at the same time.
Claim I: GRV went for the PDP deputy governorship screening exercise held on June 22, 2022.
Verification
On June 18, 2022, the PDP constituted a deputy governorship candidate screening committee. The screening exercise was held on June 22, 2022, in Abuja.
Those screened were Nollywood actress, Olufunke Akindele; former governorship aspirant, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour (GRV); former senatorial candidate for Lagos East, Yeye Shobajo, another governorship aspirant, David Kolawole Vaughan known as DAKOVA, and Teslim Balogun, an engineer.
The screening, which generated controversies amongst party members, finally saw Akindele emerge as the running mate to Jandor. Although the official confirmation was made known by the PDP on July 12, 2022, it was earlier reported on July 6, by the Daily Trust newspaper.
Verdict:
The claim is true. GRV was present at the deputy governorship candidate screening exercise held by the PDP on June 22, 2022.
Claim II: GRV declared he was a member of the Labour Party on June 18, 2022
Verification
The CDD Election War Room checked to verify the claim made by Jandor as to the time GRV declared he was a member of LP.
We found a news report by Premium Times which speculated that GRV was to decamp from the PDP to LP. The report was published on July 9, 2022.
The report, which quoted an unknown source, further noted that the former aspirant was decamping as a result of his dissatisfaction with the party’s internal politics.
An online medium, the city people had claimed that issue’s bordering on the candidacy of Akindele being picked as the deputy candidate as opposed to him was part of his reasons for departure.
In a fact-check earlier carried out by the CDD Election War Room, Jandor, the PDP candidate noted that he had picked Akindele as his running mate to avoid godfatherism for which he had left the APC.
Further search also revealed that GRV announced his departure from the PDP in a Twitter post dated July 13, 2022.
While making the announcement of his departure from the PDP, GRV stated that it was time for “a different kind of politics, one with ideology, integrity that puts the needs of the people first. A shift from the obsessive levels of primitive accumulation that has plagued our political class.”
Verdict
The claim that GRV declared his membership of LP on June 18, 2022 is false.
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