Osun INEC Commissioner Nominee To Reappear Before Senate Over Petition Against Him, Says ‘I Did Not Admit Continuing Membership Of APC

The Resident Electoral Commissioner nominee from Osun State, Alhaji Muideen Olalekan Raheem, has dispelled the claim to be an existing member of All Progressives Congress (APC) at the screening committee sitting of the Senate held on Tuesday, 5th November, 2019, contrary to wrong impressions created by some reporters.

Muideen explained in a telephone conversation with OsunReporters News, claiming to have been a member of APC up till 2015 when he left partisan politics to further is education.

According to him; “I never admitted current and continuing membership of APC at the screening session by the Senate panel, I specifically maintained that I was in APC till 2015 when I left partisan politics and went back to school.

“I attempted to contest the local government chairmanship of Osogbo Local Government in 2013 but the election never held because the then government under Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola did not conduct the election and hence it never held. I couldn’t have been a candidate at an election that never held,” REC nominee claimed.

On the aspect of his involvement in the governorship campaign of an aspirant on the platform of APC, Raheem queried any law that against the choice of supporting any candidate.

He said; “is there any law that says I can’t support a candidate of my choice? Not all supporters of a candidate are members of political parties.

“I campaigned for Barr. Kunle Adegoke towards the primary election of APC as an individual and as the DG of ‘Tiwa n Tiwa LOsun Development Association’ founded by the said Adegoke and who is my brother and a popular philanthropist in Osun.
That I campaigned for him does not make me a member of his political party.
I never attended any party meeting since I left politics around 2014 – 2015.

“I never organised or participated in the event of a political party since I left.
I never paid membership dues of a political party and I never received any benefit from a political party.

” I supported candidates in the 2015 and 2019 general elections as individuals who mandatorily were contesting on the platform of different political parties. If a better candidate had come from another party, I would have supported and campaigned for him.

“I’m interested in contributing to a better Nigeria and not the name of a political party,” he concluded.

OsunReporters News recalled that, President Buhari forwarder names of nominees from three different States of the country to the Senate for confirmation for the post of Resident Electoral Commissioners.

The nominees are; Umar Mukhtar Gajiram from Borno, Dr. Aiaiibo Sinikiem Johnson from Bayelsa and Raheem Muideen Olalekan from Osun state while the Osun State nominee would reappear before the Senate on Friday 8th of November, 2019 for further screening.