Abiola Ajimobi: Three years exit of political titan, yet relevant | By Adeniyi Olowofela

When COVID struck the world in the year 2020, little did we know, it will take one of the most successful Governors in Oyo-State, the Koseleri 1. Senator Abiola Ajimobi died in a controversial manner tied to the COVID attack, three days after attending the National Executive Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja, the nation’s capital. He died in a well-established hospital in Lagos.

The death caused political seismic waves across the length and breadth of Nigeria.

Before that, Governor Seyi Makinde has been looking for ways to go for the jugular of his predecessor in office, starting with the hullabaloo of vehicles purportedly removed from Government House, to the seizure of Ajimobi’s house up till today, to reversal of NURTW arrangement, to cancellation of the School Governing Board ( SGB) educational policy to gazetted Olubadan Chieftaincy title and installation of some High-Chiefs in Ibadan to “Kingship” title and neighbouring towns also benefited from the innovation, Governor Seyi Makinde (GSM) reversed.

Years later, Governor Makinde is now towing the path of Ajimobi Koseleri1 under his Omi-tun tun 2.0. The NURTW/Park Manager has been unified from warring groups, and the sacked Kings of Olubadan will soon be restored including Baba Rasidi Ladoja, the former Governor of the state (unless he declines).

On Political Turv, Ajimobi’s Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has become the President and Commander of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Almost, all Oyo-State citizens and Indigenes supported and voted Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Furthermore on the Political landscape, the efforts of Ajimobi to ensure unity in APC were supplanted by intra-party bickering which made the party lose the gubernatorial election despite having the highest number in the National Assembly. The party in Oyo-State is now APC, “APPDP,” “PDAPC” “Progressive ACCORD” all sorts of arrangement, strange to political alignment since 1999. Oyo-State APC is badly fragmented and obviously and ominously the only person who can intervene is President Tinubu. Members are operating in cubicle and silos mentality.

No known Leader is willing to defer to others. The vacuum created by the demise of Abiola Ajimobi.

As all of us are remembering the demise of the late sage – Abiola Ajimobi, I used this medium to appeal to Governor Seyi Makinde to return the Ajimobi’s house seized by him to the family. We appreciate you for immortalizing the late Governor Ajimobi by renaming The First Technical University, which he founded, after him. GSM heal the wound, nothing we can do about the scars – return to Ajimobi’s house.

 

Adeniyi Olowofela, a Professor of Geophysics (Solid Earth), former Oyo State Commissioner for Education, and Commissioner representing Oyo State at the Federal Character Commission (FCC), writes from Ibadan.