Accord Party Members in Osun Demand N50m Campaign Fund

Members and supporters of the Accord party in Osun State are angry. They say party leaders have cheated them out of the N50m mobilisation fund meant for the recent PBAT Door-to-Door Movement programme in the state.

Sunday PUNCH found out that this fund was supposed to help mobilise different support groups within the party. But many who took part in the programme claim they did not receive any money.

One of the event organisers, who asked to remain anonymous, shared that N100m was planned for mobilising various groups within the All Progressives Congress and Accord for the inauguration programme.

“I know that N50m was allocated to each of the two parties to mobilise their supporters,” he said.

An aide to Governor Ademola Adeleke also spoke on the issue. He asked to stay unnamed because he feared backlash. He mentioned that his support group had not received any funds.

“Our support group was asked to mobilise members, but they haven’t received a kobo,” the aide stated.

A member of the National Association of Nigerian Students in the South-West region also expressed frustration. He said the students’ group had not received any money, even after mobilising members for the event.

The student leader, who did not want to be named, accused the Accord leadership of holding back the funds. “The PBAT Door-to-Door rally showed how selfish and greedy our leaders are in this so-called Accord. The organisers decided to split the mobilisation between the APC and Accord.”

“Till now, Accord leaders have not paid us, nor explained why there is a delay,” he said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the Osun State Coordinator of the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement, Timothy Olanrewaju, told Sunday PUNCH on Friday that the mobilisation funds had been given out. He suggested that those protesting should blame their party leaders, saying the money had been released to them.

“Those people protesting should hold their leaders responsible. The fund was released to them. I, as the central coordinator, was not even given any slot. My own mobilisation was also part of the APC slots.

“The calculations we made were N80,000 per bus and N10,000 for each person in an 18-seater bus. The 5,000 people we expected from Accord were not even up to that, if not for the extra mobilisation from our own end,” Olanrewaju explained.

On the other hand, the Accord chairman in the state, Pastor Victor Akande, said he was not aware of this issue. He added that the money did not come through him. Akande, who spoke with our correspondent on Saturday, pointed out that no party member had officially complained to him.

“I am not aware of the funds. I wasn’t part of the committee. Also, if money was released, I believe those who mobilised should have received their money by now,” he stated.