Politics
Osun goes to PDP’s Adeleke | By Muideen Alatede
With the margin of victory, the incumbent Governor Adegboyega Oyetola would probably still have lost if he had reconciled with former Governor Rauf Aregbesola.
Adeleke’s strategy of engagement was better than the last election and he was clearly one step ahead of the game.
Aregbesola would feel he has exacted revenge. He is entitled to that feeling given the way anything or anybody attached to his name was treated by Oyetola. It’s a bitter-sweet outcome for the Osun Progressives (TOP) group. They are out of the game completely for now but they can hang on to the satisfaction that Oyetola will no longer spit in their faces.
Could Bola Tinubu have done a lot better to mend fences? Oh yes but he fell short. While the defeat is bad and dangerous to his ambition to be president, he has 7 months to right many wrongs in the party structure of his party in his ancestral state. There is a lesson in humility and give-and-take. In politics, with a view to winning elections, winners in a party should not take all. The disgruntled are always out to sting.
For the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), it’s a sort of impetus and feel-good factor after the scalding defeat in Ekiti State where they also suffered from a disunited house. The battle for the South-west is on. It is be foolhardy to wave away the threats the party and Atiku may pose. It’s 4-2 now. The old Oyo State is cast in the hand of the PDP.
To start dissecting what went wrong in a comprehensive way will be left to more inclined political analysts but I have to say that the PORTABLE factor was in very bad taste. It certainly cost the All Progressives Congress (APC) votes of decent neutrals. Everything about engaging him to perform, apart from the crowd catching glimpses of him, was wrong. And him mounting the statute of Obafemi Awolowo with his trousers pull down is disgraceful. His viral video afterwards cursing and ranting did no good at all. Comparing his cameo with Davido’s dignified appearance on the other side is like comparing a prince to a tramp.
While the battle for the south-west is certainly on, will the result have a big impact on the presidential contest? It’s reasonable to think so even though Osun is just one of 37 territories the election will take place. If it is to be a straight battle between Tinubu and Atiku, I will be overly concerned. Peter Obi gaining momentum in Atiku’s traditional fortresses will take a huge hit. It will be interesting to see how events unfold in the next few months.
Oyo APC is as fragmented as the Osun APC. While it’s better that the most of the aggrieved have not stayed back in the party to cause sabotage, the chunks that have left are significant. 7 months is a long time in politics though.
I congratulate Governor-elect, Adeleke Nurudeen Jackson Ademola. He has done well to reinvent himself after a certificate scandal and his hard work has paid off. Dancing, when we leave out politics, is actually a trait of happiness. May the people of Osun find happiness in his administration.
To my PDP friends, enjoy the victory.
Muideen Alatede, a lawyer and politician writes from Ibadan, Oyo state
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State has criticized the alleged forceful conversion of public reading and learning facilities in Dugbe, Ibadan, into shopping malls and lock-up shops by the state government, describing the development as shameful, ill-conceived, and unacceptable.
In a statement released over the weekend by its Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, and made available to journalists in Ibadan, the APC also raised concerns about the alleged sale of the modern motor park facility at Wema Area on New Ife Road, Ibadan, built during the administration of the late Senator Abiola Ajimobi.
According to the party, the motor park has been sold to a pastor who presides over a popular church near the facility.
Residents of Ibadan, the state capital, were reportedly stunned when they noticed the sudden erection of massive private business complexes within the premises of the Oyo State Library Board.
The facilities, built by the defunct Western Region government, had served as public libraries and archives for decades, benefitting students, researchers, and tourists until recently.
“It is a sad reality that the buildings which used to serve as public libraries and archives in Dugbe axis of Ibadan have now paved the way for the development of commercial and business structures,” Sadare said.
“The implication is that education and research development have been relegated to the background in the state by an administration that has done little to address the poor reading culture among young students.”
The APC expressed alarm over what it termed the erosion of public heritage under Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration, alleging that public properties are being sold or leased to private individuals and groups under questionable circumstances.
“How can a government wake up one day and convert public reading facilities and archives into lock-up shops in the name of making money, thereby subjecting society to the dangers of illiteracy and ignorance?” the statement queried.
The party also cited other instances of alleged mismanagement of public assets, including the concession of OYSADEP Guest House in Saki and Agbowo Shopping Complex in Ibadan, warning that the trend poses a serious threat to the state’s socio-economic development.
“Sad enough, the ignoble activities of the governor and a few other characters around him as they involve mismanagement of land and other resources belonging to the state have paved the way for a surge in land grabbing cases in most parts of the state capital. There are many cases involving appointees of the governor, PDP lawmakers, local government officials, and party chieftains,” the statement added.
The APC called on well-meaning individuals and stakeholders in the state to demand accountability from the Makinde administration and halt what it described as the systematic erosion of public resources and heritage.
Over 300 constituents of Akinyele/Lagelu Federal Constituency in Oyo State benefitted from a skill acquisition and empowerment programme organized by their representative in the National Assembly, Hon. Akinmoyede Olafisoye.
The event, held at Faith Joe Event Centre, Alegongo, Akobo, Ibadan, aimed to address the challenges of unemployment and economic hardship by equipping participants with practical skills and financial support.
The programme focused on empowering youths, students, and unemployed graduates to become self-reliant. Each participant was provided with a certificate, a Point of Sale (POS) terminal, an umbrella, and ₦100,000 as a startup grant to kickstart their businesses.
The tools and financial aid were designed to enable beneficiaries to establish sustainable sources of income.
Participants received comprehensive training, gaining hands-on experience to ensure they could effectively utilize the tools provided. The POS machines were configured with the personal details of the recipients, ensuring proper use and discouraging unauthorized transfers.
Addressing the participants, Akinmoyede who is the Chairman House Committee on Nigeria/ Mexico Parliamentary Friendship enjoined the beneficiaries to explore the opportunity for their benefit by ensuring that they use the machines for the purpose it was meant for.
He added that all the machines have been configured with the documents of individual beneficiaries which will make it very difficult to transfer to another person.
In his goodwill message, the Oyo Central Senatorial chairman of APC, Hon. Joshua Oyebamiji said comparing what the lawmaker has been doing in the area of dishing out empowerment and palliatives to his constituents, it is difficult to tag him a first-timer at the national assembly.
While appreciating Akinmoyede for his gesture at the event, former APC Deputy State Chairman, Alhaji Isiaka Alimi, Hon. Fatai Awoyoola, and Hon. Akinbode Emmanuel said they were yet to discover the magic wand being used by the lawmaker for his constant and habitual empowerment programmes.
Some of the beneficiaries who spoke at the end of the training, Afolabi Kuburat, Akinropo Akindotun, Ajala Abisade Iyabo, and Grace Anuoluwapo Ayinde lauded the lawmaker for giving them the opportunity to be self-reliant at this time when Nigerians are facing economic hardship.
The House of Representatives member representing Akinyele/Lagelu federal constituency Oyo State, Hon. Prince Akinmoyede Olafisoye Wasiu has initiated another skill acquisition and capacity-building training for no fewer than 300 members of his constituency.
The initiative which is being organized in partnership with Federal Cooperative College, Ibadan is part of a strategic effort by the lawmaker to foster rural development of cooperative for their economic emancipation and break the shackles of poverty so as to alleviate the impact of the high cost of living among the people in Akinyele/Lagelu federal constituency he represents.
The training programme is coming up on Monday 18th November, 2024 at Faith Joe Event Centre hall. Alegongo, Ibadan by 8.00am.
A statement issued by the Special Assistant on Media to the lawmaker, Alimi Abdullahi stated that the capacity-building is designed to equip participants with essential entrepreneurial skills with a view to building sustainable livelihoods and improve the quality of lives of the people of Akinyele/Lagelu federal constituency.
All the participants for the training are expected to be at the venue by 8am so as not to miss any part of the training.
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