A former Ekiti State Governor Segun Oni has slammed Governor Ayo Fayose for asking President Muhammadu Buhari to resign over petrol scarcity.

Oni, deputy national chairman (South) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), described Fayose’s latest attack on President Buhari as “misdirected”.

The APC chieftain said the governor was only treating Nigerians to a comic relief by criticising the President at the slightest opportunity.

The former governor, who spoke yesterday at his home in Ifaki-Ekiti during an end-of-year get-together for Party leaders and members, advised Fayose to “rather toe the path of honour and stop playing to the gallery on Buhari’s issues”.

Oni, who is also a governorship aspirant, was confident his party will win the 2018 governorship and restore good governance.

He urged APC to field a “strong and popular candidate” as the party’s flag bearer.

The APC chieftain advised those he called “weak aspirants” to withdraw and reduced the field of contestants to a manageable level.

On Fayose’s call that President Buhari should resign, Oni said it was unfair for the governor to attack the President when nobody had called for his (Fayose’s) resignation over the hunger in Ekiti State.

Oni said: “It’s like someone calling for his (Fayose’s) resignation over the level of hunger in Ekiti, because the governor’s stomach infrastructure policy has failed to fill the stomachs of over 80 per cent of our people.

“I want to believe that our governor didn’t mean what he said; he was just joking. I don’t think he meant what he said.

“I know that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources are addressing this issue. It is a general problem, and it is regrettable. But the main problem causing this scarcity is hoarding.

“Governor Fayose is operating stomach infrastructure, how would he feel if he is asked to resign on account that many people have not eaten from the rice being distributed under this policy. So, I see this as a mere joke.”

The former governor noted that the election will not create enmity between him and Dr. Kayode Fayemi, who is being nudged to join the race.

He added: “What I expect from APC is a free, fair and credible primary. The primary, to any party, is to pick a candidate who can win an election. That is why it is important for us to listen to what the people want. This should be our objective and not the profit the delegates will make.

“Though there is hunger in town, but we must do the right thing. The highest bidder will bring his money; yes, you can collect it and still go ahead and vote for a candidate that can win for us.

“Ekiti election is very critical to APC. It is critical to our election in Osun State and the two elections are critical to 2019, because we have to win again. I want to say that I won’t leave the party, even if I am not picked as a loyal party man.”