Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has dismissed his reported expulsion from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), insisting that no organ of the party has the power to remove him.
Fayose, who spoke in an interview with AF24NEWS, also launched a scathing attack on the judge who approved the controversial PDP National Convention held in Ibadan, describing him as a “chop-chop judge.”
Reacting to his name being listed among those purportedly expelled at the Ibadan convention, Fayose said the action carries no weight because the court had already ruled against the legality of the convention.
“Nobody expelled me,” he declared.
He added, “The court says all they did in that convention should not be recognised. So the pronouncement cannot be recognised in itself. Don’t deceive yourself. A pronouncement by the PDP or any political party does not override the court of the land.”
According to him, anyone insisting otherwise is ignoring legal reality. He stated, “If you say this person is a chief and God says he’s not a chief, you have to respect that.”
Fayose also blamed the PDP’s leadership for the deepening crisis within the party.
“PDP is in trouble because of their own making,” he said.
He criticised those attempting to seize party structures, warning that such tendencies would backfire.
“When you try to corner party structures because you want to lead the people, you don’t destroy structures. If you attempt to destroy people, many who you think are fools will gather against you,” he stated.
The former governor did not hold back in attacking the judge who ruled in favour of the Ibadan convention. He alleged that the judge had ulterior motives and was preparing for retirement.
“The judge is a chop-chop judge. I’ve said it to the paper. The judge wants to retire. He’s leaving in a few months, so he took a deal from Governor Makinde,” Fayose claimed.
He argued that the judge issued questionable interim orders that compromised the final judgment. He said, “He was only buying time. How do you grant an ex parte order that compromises the end of your judgment?”
Fayose said multiple cases were already before the court, insisting that the Federal High Court, not a state high court, remains the proper venue for such matters.
Despite his outburst, Fayose insisted he remains a bona fide member of the PDP. He dismissed those who held the Ibadan convention as a mere clique.
“May I say to you, I am a member of the PDP. Whatever they said at that so-called convention, at that committee-of-friends dinner, that’s what I call them, means nothing,” he said.
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