THE face-off between Governor Adegboyega Oyetola of Osun State and his predecessor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, peaked yesterday ahead of the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship primary, scheduled for tomorrow.
Though Oyetola maintained a deafening silence since the crisis began, Aregbesola on the other hand, recently alleged that Oyetola, through the support of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Chief Bisi Akande, destroyed his legacies in the state.
A former governor of the state, Chief Akande had reached out to the two gladiators on many occasions but his effort to broker a truce was not fruitful. The two are adamant about the control of the party.
Proxy war
The crisis recently took a twist with both sides resorting to proxy war, using groups to fight their battles.
While Aregbesola’s men accused Oyetola of funding students’ groups to protest against the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, the state government accused the Minister of using a para-military organisation and hoodlums to disrupt peace in the state.
I begged Oyetola for 2 years –Aregbesola
In an attempt to set the records, the Aregbesola, yesterday, disclosed that he begged Governor Oyetola for two years to forestall the present crisis on the party but the governor did not heed.
Addressing party members in Ikire, Irewole Local Government headquarters, the Minister said: “There is no harm in replacing someone who is not doing well and not in tandem with progressive ideals. That is what we are working on and that is why we have come to you.
“I worked very hard to ensure Oyetola’s election. It was, however, a rude shock when he got into office and started a grand witch-hunt against me. We campaigned for Oyetola through thick and thin to make him Governor. It was however surprising to see how he was doing to me when he got to the office.
“When he started doing it, I sent emissaries and started begging him. This went on for two years. I continued to send emissaries to him to appeal to him. I also begged him too. I even told him not to like me at all, but not destroy my good works or personality. He did not heed to this. He kept on with his witch-hunt.
“He said I did not support him to become Governor. I appealed to him that he may not even like me, but he should not tarnish my image or destroy my legacies and that of our party, the true progressives in Osun politics. He did not listen. He was bent on destroying me and that’s what he has done.
“After two years, genuine party leaders gathered together with the sole aim of rescuing our party from these marauders. That is what we are here to do. We were the ones who sweat hard for the progress and success our party has achieved. We brought the former party Chairman, (Famodun) from the PDP. It is time to send them packing.”
You belittled your office – Osun APC Elder’s caucus
But picking holes in Aregbesola’s assertion, the Osun APC elder’s caucus berated Aregbesola over what they described as a show of rascality.
The elders, who spoke through their chairman, Elder Sola Akinwumi, said: “As a matter of fact, the erstwhile Governor belittled himself and I am very sure he didn’t know the implications of what he did. He acted so low and naively as if he was the sitting Governor.
“Was he telling us that there are two Governors in the state? Has he forgotten that he was no longer a Governor? Well, be it as it was, we have known his intention and we leave everyone to his or her conscience.
“I commend the way and manner our Governor has been managing the circumstance over time. He has demonstrated patience, tolerance and integrity.”
CSOs want Aregbesola sanctioned
Also, a coalition of Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, in Osun State has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to sack Aregbesola if he is too big to be reprimanded.
The CSOs: The Osun Masterminds; Transparency and Accountability Group TAG; Centre for Sustainable Dialogue; Centre for Democratic Ethics; Oodua Youth Parliament; Osun Young Professionals; Nigerians for Good Governance; Nigeria Youths Representatives Council; and Gender Tonic Initiative, insisted that the former Governor has engaged in a show of rascality.
The coalition in their letter to President Buhari, by their Coordinator, Wasiu Alli, said the Minister’s behaviour encouraged his followers to embark on an act capable of undermining law and order in the state.
The letter reads: “We state unequivocally that recent utterances of the Minister of Interior, are today heating the polity in Osun State to a point where residents now fear for their lives. While we understand the expediency of political games, we do not see any reason a government official will be leading a process that is leading to unrest.
“While superintending over Security Agencies under the Ministry of Interior, Mr Rauf Aregbesola, has now turned security details attached to him by these Agencies into tools of political warfare, clearly undermining the jurisdiction of the Nigeria Police Force in maintaining security in Osun State.
“We have seen recently how men of the NSCDC, the NIS and the NCS sporadically shot in the air to terrify citizens of the State in Osogbo and other towns within the State. We refer to the official release of the Osun State Police Command, concerning the actions of men of the NSCDC, NIS and NCS.
“If the Federal Government, under President Buhari, fails to call Mr. Rauf Aregbesola to order and charge him to focus on his official responsibilities instead of going about causing civil unrest, he will end up inflaming the otherwise peaceful Osun State. Where he cannot be cautioned, we demand his outright sack or redeployment if he cannot act responsibly in line with the dictates of the Office he presently holds. A Public Officer must never be seen acting contrary to the spirit and provisions of the Nigerian Constitution.
“Where the Federal Government is unable to act swiftly to caution Mr Aregbesola, the Senate of the Federal Republic must show capacity by sanctioning his sack and impress it on Mr President to effect same. Failure to do this will bring disrepute to the exalted office of the Minister.”
Oyetola sponsoring them—Aregbesola’s aide
Countering, Aregbesola, who spoke through his Media Aide, Sola Fasure, said the coalition, which lacks credibility, is leading Governor Adegboyega Oyetola’s plot to smear his personality.
Fasure said: “Their agenda is to precipitate a crisis, cause chaos in Osun and disrupt the APC governorship primary election they are poised to lose. They will then heap the blame on the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and call to question his integrity and leadership capacity.
“It is on record that on Monday while returning from a well-attended political sensitization rally in Ilesa, known hoodlums attacked the convoy of the Minister as he approached the popular Old Garage junction in Osogbo.
“His convoy comprising of well-trained officers of the Department of State Security, the Nigeria Police Force (charged with protecting the minister) and other security personnel drawn from the Paramilitary services, professionally responded to the daring attackers who were armed with diverse sophisticated weapons.
“Having failed to achieve their mission of killing the minister on Monday, the sponsors of the evil plot have now resorted to smearing his name, hoping to achieve through the back door, what they can’t get fairly on the field.
“This, in our opinion, doesn’t deserve the murder of any Nigerian, talk-less of a serving minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“The Osun State Government, in particular, has mounted a campaign of calumny against the NSCDC because they were providing security for some citizens in Osun while they hold meetings and warded off attacks against them. But they were blackmailed in this same manner into withdrawing their protection, only for the group to be attacked afterwards by thugs loyal to the government.”
Aregbesola’s camp rejects Tinubu as a mediator
Meanwhile, efforts to reconcile the two gladiators before the election seems impossible, as the Minister’s loyalists have rejected the call for Asiwaju Tinubu to mediate the crisis.
One Akanni Omo Oba, in an article titled: ‘Open letter to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu: The Osun calabash must not be broken’, charged Tinubu to summon the warring parties to a roundtable.
The group, in a rejoinder by Rasaq Salinsile, said: “As the crisis continued, especially with the party congress, Tinubu, who was then away on a medical trip in London sent Alhaji Massari and Mallam Nuhu Ribadu to intervene in the matter.
“We heard that Alhaji Massari delivered the message to Tinubu, and was told not to contact us again. Several efforts to reach Alhaji Massari since then have failed.
“However, in this case, it is very clear that Tinubu has had many opportunities and interventions in this issue but as an interested party, Tinubu lacks the necessary courage to speak the truth to his nephew/half-brother. It is painful to say, that our Tinubu has refused to ensure fairness between a tested loyalist and his nephew/half-brother to the detriment of our great party.
“We want to say that, it is clear to everyone that the resolution of this crisis is in the overall best interest of our party at the State and National Levels. We believe the persons with the character to resolve this crisis fairly and inclusively are, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, acting on behalf of the president, national leadership of our great party or our dear and amiable President Muhammadu Buhari.”
We’re open to negotiation, says Oyetola’s camp
On its part, the Oyetola camp said it is not averse to reconciliation, but it is concerned about the genuine intention of the Aregbesola camp.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Political Matters, Oluomo Sunday Akere said: “We are not averse to reconciliation, but we are concerned about their intention. We are being careful not to sit at a table with a set of people that have made up their minds to pull down the building on everyone. But if they want genuine reconciliation, we are one family and can always sit together again.”
Osun govt alleges stockpiling of fake NSCDC, Correctional Service uniforms
Meanwhile, ahead of the APC primary election in the state, the State Government, yesterday, alleged that some persons have concluded moves to import fake personnel para-military personnel into the state.
In a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Funke Egbemode, not condone acts capable of jeopardizing relative peace in the state.
The statement reads: “We are in possession of an intelligence report indicating that some persons have stockpiled the uniforms of the NSCDC, and the Nigerian Correctional Service with an intent to distribute them to non-state actors for use during the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship primary election in Osun State scheduled for Saturday, February 19, 2021.
“We want to warn those behind this nefarious plot to jettison the idea as security operatives have been put on the alert and mandated to deal decisively with anyone bent on causing violence and destruction in Osun State.
“We also want to appeal to parents and guardians to rein in their children and wards so as not to lend themselves as tools in the hands of these merchants of death and instability, whose only stock in trade is violence and precipitation of crisis.”
