The Special Adviser to Governor Adegboyega Oyetola on Political Matters, Oluomo Sunday Akere who also reacted to the issue of divisions in the party spoke about the efforts the governor was making to bring aggrieved members into the main fold of the party. Excerpts:
The factional Chairman of APC in the state, Rasaq Salinsile alleged that most of the attacks on their members were perpetrated by those close to Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, what is your reaction to that?
First, there is no factional chairman, by the constitution of our party, Salinsile is just a member like every other person in the APC. Our chairman, Prince Gboyega Famodun was just given certificate of return as the legally and properly elected party chairman in the state. On the issue of attack, it is mere propaganda. Check all the attacks reported in the media, they were the aggressors in all of them. In fact they resorted to violence just to attract attention from Abuja that all was not well with the party here.
I was at the party Secretariat when the Appeal committee came and some of their people began to pelt officials of the party with stones and other items. But for the prompt intervention of the police men at the venue, many of us would have been lynched. Most of those who stayed behind in the violence were their members because they knew the hoodlums that perpetrated the attack. Those who were physically attacked were supporters of Ileri-Oluwa with their branded orange cap, many of them had to remove their caps to escape from the scene.
The matter was reported at Ataoja police division. The attack on Aregbesola’s Personal Assistant, Olateju occured at a club, he is the Minister’s cousin, well known in Osun, go and read his story of the purported attack on him and the reaction of the member of the House of Assembly and those who were with them when the purported attack took place, again, you will discover their lies.
They were doing this successfully because of the gentle nature of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola. It is unfortunate that within the country’s political space, most irresponsible politicians judge others by their own standards. Those who were arrested in respect of the Ikirun attack on the council chairman are members of their group and some other passersby, so, their noise is mere propaganda.
The party is known for discipline and internal mechanism for settling dispute, what happened this time around?
The situation is very pathetic, they were doing so because they enjoy the backing of the Minister. Let me quickly remind you of some events from the past. Former Governor Aregbesola single-handedly decided those that would work with him without recourse to elders caucus or party leadership. When Moshood Adeoti was appointed Secretary to the State Government, Aregbesola picked Lowo Adebiyi from his own Senatorial District as Chairman of the party and when some persons started complaining, the party prevailed on them to let go. Party affairs were reduced to three men affairs and no one dared to raise any objection or castigate the party and the persons involved. They started the whole thing, first by undermining the governor’s political authority, after which they started abusing his person publicly. You need to see their videos on different social media platforms how they cast aspersion on the person of the governor. It is absurd. Their intention is to pull down the whole building if they are not in control.
What are the elders of the party doing, the likes of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Chief Bisi Akande?
The two you mentioned have met with Governor Adegboyega Oyetola and Ogbeni Aregbesola, where some resolutions were reached. I am aware that the governor reached out to his predecessor after the meeting. Oyetola tried to carry the Minister along during the revalidation and registration exercise but Ogbeni Aregbesola turned it down.
Rather than come around and allow the party leadership to support him during his revalidation, he called a group and went ahead to cause disharmony in the party by calling party chieftains unprintable names which was widely reported. Chief Akande had called them several times individually and called them together severally before he invited Asiwaju Tinubu to be part of their meetings. Yet, Aregbesola went ahead to cause more rancour and his associates followed suit.
Has the governor’s group foreclosed the chances of reconciliation?
Governor Oyetola is a man of peace and has always advocated such. From the beginning, what the governor preaches is reconciliation, even before the party congresses, he has been stressing the need to do so. However, our brothers on the other side embarked on campaign of calumny to undermine the governor. Besides, they claimed to want reconciliation, but all the while they have been jumping from one court to another seeking to destabilise the party structure, but their efforts to so do have been futile.
When the National Reconciliation Committee of the party came around, they listed as part of the condition for peace that the governor should resign his membership of the National Caretaker Committee, would they have demanded same, if Aregbesola was the governor? This is just few of the many things they have been doing to make reconciliation impossible.
Considering the margin with which the APC won the 2018 Governorship election, will it not be difficult for the governor to win the July 16 election?
The governor’s chances are brighter now. The problem in 2018 had to do with Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola’s attitude towards the party members and the public. The civil servants then were angry with the issue of modulated salaries, parents were not satisfied with the single uniform policy, the elites and other stakeholders were angry with the school merger policy and the market women were also not in agreement with the decision to bring a company as sole producer of school uniforms. In short, the former governor was fighting too many battles. That was the situation in 2018, but now all those issues are no longer there.
The governor was said to have reviewed some of the policies of his predecessor to spite him. Is this true?
That’s one of their propaganda. Ogbeni was aware of the review in the education sector. First, Aregbesola during his last public interaction programme with the people said it publicly that any policy that the people may not like, his successor will review such. Moreover, when the committee for education review was set up, the Chairman, Professor Olu Aina met with Aregbesola to seek his permission to proceed and he granted it after knowing other members of the committee. Also, upon conclusion of their work, they met to discuss with him before their recommendation was eventually implemented by the governor. The policies were reviewed in line with the request of the people and in the interest of the state generally.
Can the APC win election without genuine reconciliation?
Presently, TOP members are about 10 percent of the APC in the state. The last membership registration we did, showed that the party has over 500,000 members in the state. So, if they decide not to come back into the party, we will win election, although, as a family, we want them to return if they are ready to be serious and loyal party members. Go round the local government areas in the state, road infrastructure abound everywhere, Governor Oyetola has been building roads and spreading democracy dividends. Every community has been given a sense of belonging in terms of infrastructure, political appointment and other benefits.
