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Tag: Ajimobi

  • ARG endorses Ambode, Amosun, Ajimobi

    The Afenifere Renewal Group has endorsed the governorship candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos, Ogun, and Oyo states.

    The socio-political group, in a statement by its National Chairman, Olawale Oshun, thanked Yoruba voters for speaking eloquently and peacefully with their votes during the March 28 presidential and National Assembly elections.

    “ARG enjoins Yoruba people to continue to be progressive minded in act and in thought.

    “This value must reflect in our action on Saturday as we vote for APC candidates, who best represent our perennial aspiration for development,” the statement said.

    It warned Yoruba to be wary of Afonja-styled politicians who for the sake of personal ambition are ready to sell Yoruba patrimony.

     The group said: “Yoruba land cannot afford another interregnum – the type that set us back between 2003 and 2011.

    “To this extent, we recommend for your adoption Akinwunmi Ambode for Lagos State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun for  Ogun State Governor and Abiola Ajimobi for Oyo State Governor.

    “ARG is convinced that the current renaissance of good governance, developmental strides and welfare policies that has commenced in our land, can only continue, be sustained and flourish under these candidates.”

    The group also enjoined the people of Ekiti State “to take a cue from their kith and kin in Ondo State and break through the reactionary clouds hovering over their space, particularly in their choices of House of Assembly candidates, so that they can soar in glorious sky with the rest of the Yoruba.”

    While commending credible Yoruba leaders and groups for rejecting Greek gifts during the presidential election, ARG also thanked Yoruba people for “heeding the call of an assemblage of Omoluabis and authentic and respected monarchs, elders and leaders and for rejecting pretenders who sought to impose a strange leadership culture on us.”

  • Will Ajimobi break the jinx?

    Will Ajimobi break the jinx?

    Two former governors, the incumbent and a former Senate Leader will lock horns on Saturday for the right to occupy the government house at Agodi, Ibadan as the governor of Oyo State. The four, and a businessman, Seyi Makinde, are the top contenders for the job.

    Except for the former Senate Leader, Teslim Folarin, who is the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Makinde, who is the candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), any of the other three  that wins the election will be breaking the second term jinx in the state. They are the incumbent, Abiola Ajimobi of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Rashidi Ladoja of Accord and Adebayo Alao-Akala of Labour Party (LP).

    Since the Second Republic, no governor has been re-elected in the state. All attempts by previous chief executives of the state have been futile. Hence, it has become a popular saying that no governor gets a second term in Oyo State. Judging by the results of the National Assembly election on March 28, none of Ladoja and Alao-Akala can be easily wished away in the race to take Ajimobi’s job, meaning that the jinx is about to be broken on April 11 by one of them.

    The National Assembly election naturally puts the APC far ahead of others as it produced the three senators and 12 out of the 14 House of Representatives members in the state.

    Though they were beaten, Ladoja and Alao-Akala look undefeated by the bravery they have been displaying since then. But can either of them or Folarin spring a surprise?

    How they stood in the 2011 governorship election

    Ajimobi, who stood on the platform of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), polled 420,852 votes to dislodge the then incumbent, Alao-Akala, who scored 387,132 votes. The latter contested under the platform of the PDP. Ladoja scored 275,773 to come third in the election.

    Factors that shaped the 2011 governorship election

    The administration of the then sitting governor, Alao-Akala, was associated with thuggery and violence. It was also seen as a profligate government which undertook so many projects that were poorly executed due to lack of commitment to quality and alleged collection of kickbacks by key functionaries of the administration.

    The crisis that rocked his party, the PDP, also grew sharply during his tenure so much so that many of the party stalwarts, particularly in Ibadan zone, worked against his re-election.

    Besides, the wave of change represented by the then ACN, was blowing through Ekiti and Osun states which had their PDP governors removed by the Court of Appeal for ACN governors.

    But Alao-Akala was generous to people around him, a factor that helped him retain so many people who patronized political power and its privileges.

    In the growing discontent against Alao-Akala’s government, Ladoja, who was his predecessor, began to make wave again, rendering the political turf more complex with his defection from PDP to Accord and speedy growth of the party before the April 26,2011 governorship election.

    But the wave of change in the region and Ajimobi’s personal popularity combined to earn him the victory in the election, defeating his closest challenger, Alao-Akala, with 33,720 votes. To earn the victory, Ajimobi defeated Akala in Ibadan and Oyo zones with a wide margin and also gave him a very close marking in Oke-Ogun area where he polled 96,667 to Akala’s  97,398. Ladoja occupied a distant third position with his 275,773 votes. As tough as it was, Ajimobi dislodged the then incumbent governor whose party was also controlling the Federal Government.

     

    With this result, however, the three parties produced seven, 13 and 12 members in the state’s House of Assembly respectively to operate as a strong party each. They also produced members of both houses of the National Assembly except Accord which did not produce a senator. But it went to the March 28, 2015 election with one senator, Olufemi Lanlehin, who defected from the ACN.

    Yet, the dynamics have changed within the last four years. Because human beings and the society are not static, politicians have criss-crossed the parties to find better comfort and advantage in realizing their personal ambition. New issues and developments have also reshaped the polity to alter voting patterns and interest that determine voters’ choice.

    It is, therefore, no surprise that in the March 28 presidential and National Assembly elections, the APC produced the three senators from zero level, and also produced 12 out of the 14 members of the House of Representatives.

    How the zones voted in the March 28,2015 National Assembly elections

    Senate

    The APC won the three senatorial seats. Results of the senatorial election may not be fully suitable for this zonal analysis. However, the results are given below for a better insight.

    As shown above, aside keeping its lead in its traditional zones of Ibadan and Oyo, the APC has gained more popularity in Oke-Ogun and Ibarapa zones where Alao-Akala came tops four years ago.

    The party did not only gain an inroad into Oke-Ogun and Ibarapa, it’s popularity has increased in Ogbomoso, Alao-Akala’s home town.

    The APC chairman in the state, Chief Akin Oke, attributed the gains to what he described as the unprecedented performance of Governor Abiola Ajimobi in the last four years across the state. Oke emphasized that the governor succeeded in touching all the five zones with unique projects that meet their needs and generally improved the standard of living of residents in the areas. For instance, the politician cited dualization of roads in Ibadan, Oyo, Ogbomoso and Iseyin (Oke-Ogun) as one of such projects.

    But Accord did not agree with him. The Director General of the Sen. Rashidi Ladoja Campaign Organization, Hon. Adeolu Adeleke, described the result of the election as sham, saying it was rigged in favour of the APC.

    The Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr Kehinde Salawu, also attributed APC’s victory in the election to the overwhelming popularity of Gen. Buhari. He said the governorship election would be different.

    Alao-Akala also attributed APC’s performance in the March 28 election to the popularity of its presidential candidate, Gen. Buhari (rtd).

    Speaking through his spokesman, Oludare Ogunlana, the former governor said that most voters are illiterate who could not differentiate between presidential and National Assembly elections.

    April 11 governorship election

    Interestingly all the major parties are approaching the governorship election with confidence. They largely believe that the tide will turn in their favour, hence, they have stepped up personal campaigns.

    In an interview with The Nation, Hon. Adeolu Adekele said in spite of the result of the National Assembly election, “Accord remains undaunted and psychologically stable with optimism of winning” the Saturday election. He said the March 28 election only encouraged the party to strengthen its campaign to prevent rigging in the governorship election.

    In his own comment, the PDP candidate, Teslim Folarin, asserted that voters would choose him because the party had educated its supporters to vote only for the PDP this time. He spoke through the State Publicity Secretary, Kehinde Salawu.

    He said: “We have educated our people to vote right this time because governorship election is crucial in any state. That is the government that is closer to the people. And we believe we will do wonderfully well on Saturday.” He said.

    The LP candidate, Alao-Akala, also insisted that he would gain people’s votes across the state to return as the next governor because, according to him, Oyo State people are tired of the Ajimobi administration.

    But APC chairman, Chief Oke, said it is very clear that voters are very pleased with the transformation, restoration and the repositioning agenda of the Ajimobi administration as shown in the results of the last election.

    Factors that will shape the April 11 election

    Buhari’s victory

    Never in the history of the Yoruba has its party of choice won at the federal level. Oyo State was among the states that rejected PDP’s president Goodluck Jonathan. Buhari polled 528,620 votes to defeat Jonathan who scored 303,376 votes, leaving him with a deficit of 225,244 votes.

    The APC’s victory at the centre will play a key role in putting Ajimobi ahead of other candidates because a lot of voters would reason that the state deserves to enjoy the privileges of having the progressive party controlling the centre.

    Besides, Oyo State has always been home to the progressives’ party. Except in 2003 and 2007 when it is generally believed that the PDP rigged massively to take over Southwest states, Oyo has always been controlled by the progressives’ party. It partly accounts for the reason Ajimobi defeated the incumbent Alao-Akala of the PDP in 2011.

    Secondly, Ajimobi’s performance in the last four years is unparalleled. He has succeeded in changing the face and the name of the state among committee of top states through his cardinal programmes including urban renewal, environmental sanitation, integrity, laudable welfare for civil servants and infrastructural development, among others.

    His footprints are visible in major towns across the state. This is perhaps the strongest factor that will count for the incumbent governor.

    Thirdly, results of the National Assembly election has punctured assumption that Accord was next in strength to the APC in the state, and that it might upstage the former. In the result, while the APC won three senatorial seats and 12 out of 14 House of Representatives seats, Accord did not win a single seat. Only the PDP and LP won one seat each, and both are in Ogbomoso land.

    With a total of 357,017 votes in the Senate and 349,618 in the House of Representatives, APC is poised to trounce, once again, other parties who came in distant second, third and fourth positions.

    Accord that came second overall, scored 213 votes for the Senate and polled 171,675 in the race for the House of Representatives. It’s total of 384,826 is barely about 53 per cent of APC’s 706,635.

    The PDP came third with a total of 325,251 votes, which is less than half of the APC’s.

    With this result, the majority of voters are likely to see other parties as weak while seeing the APC as strong, and even waxing stronger by the day.

    Already, some members of Accord in Ibadan North East Local Government have defected to the APC in a display of death of hope in their previous party. More of such defections are likely before the April 11 election.

    In another perspective, the LP may not record another landslide victory in Ogbomoso as it did in 2011 because of Akala’s defection from the PDP. As shown in the March 28 elections, voters in Ogbomoso are now divided into LP, PDP and APC, with the profile of the APC rising sharply in the last four years.

    The result has largely shown that both Alao-Akala and Ladoja, who were considered very strong contenders prior to last month election, no longer possess the electoral strength assumed. In fact, APC defeated Ladoja in his Ibadan North Local Government while Alao-Akala was unable to win all the seats in Ogbomoso or additional seat in Oke-Ogun as he did in 2011.

    Fourthly, with three senators, 12 representatives mobilizing support across all the zones, combined with the power of incumbency, Ajimobi is most favored to break the second-term jinx in Oyo State on April 11,2015.

    How the election will go

    Oyo Zone

    Judging by results of the 2011 governorship election, the March 28,2015 election and the presence of a senator and House of Representatives member, APC’s Ajimobi is projected to coast home to victory in the zone.

    Ibarapa Zone

    Going by the result of the National Assembly election and the projects Ajimobi undertook in the zone such as granting autonomy to two tertiary institutions in the area, Ajimobi is projected to comfortably lead other candidates in the zone.

    Oke-Ogun

    Judging by the results of the last election and the fact that the zone is traditionally progressives inclined, Ajimobi is projected to win convincingly in the area.

    Ogbomoso

    LP’s candidate, who hails from the town, is projected to have a clear lead in the zone. But APC and PDP candidates are also projected to follow him within a reasonable gap. This is because his defection from the PDP has broken his absolute following in the area. The deputy governorship candidate of the PDP hails from Ogbomoso while an APC senator has also emerged from the town. All these would combine to reduce the total votes he will garner from the zone.

    Ibadan

    Though Ibadan zone is a loose ground for all the four major parties, Ajimobi is projected to lead other candidates given the 2011 result and that of the last election. He is most likely to be followed by Accord candidate, Ladoja, who is popular in some of the councils.

     

  • I didn’t endorse Folarin, others – Monarch

    I didn’t endorse Folarin, others – Monarch

    The Sarkin Sasa of Ibadanland, Alhaji Haruna Maiyasin Katsina has dissociated himself from a reported endorsement of the governorship candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Sen Teslim Folarin or any other governorship candidates in the state.

    He said at no point did he ever endorse anyone governorship candidates in the state.

    Katsina, who is also the Chairman of Arewa taditional‎ rulers in 17 States in Southern Nigeria, spoke Tuesday at his palace in Ibadan, Oyo State capital.

    “I was just discharge from the hospital and I was surprised to hear in the news that I have endorsed Sen Teslim Folarin as the governorship candidate of my choice and that all Hausa’s and Fulani’s should vote for him, it’s a lie. Although all the governorship candidates have visited me to seek my support and I just bless them and urge them to desist from causing violence in the state.

    “Governor Ajimobi is my good son and I supported him in 2011 and I will never work against his second term ambition. I am not a politician but a royal father and leader, so I will never campaign for any politician. Anybody or politician using my name to campaign should desist from such or else I will be force to curse them. Its peace I want in all parts of this state. I don’t want tribal or ethnic crisis,” he said

    The Sarkin stated that he is happy with the victory of Gen Buhari, adding that it does not make him a politician but a supporter of good tidings in the country.

    He went further to thank the voters and citizens of the state for their peaceful conduct at the last presidential and national assembly election, urging them to emulate such at the upcoming governorship and house of assembly election in the state.

    He urged the Arewa people in the state to conduct themselves orderly at the April 11 election in the state and vote for any candidate of their choice without been bought over by politicians.

     

     

  • Ajimobi to Oyo voters: Don’t waste your votes

    Ajimobi to Oyo voters: Don’t waste your votes

    Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, Monday urged voters in the state to vote for him and all the All Progressive Congress (APC) candidates in the Saturday governorship and House of Assembly election, saying a vote for other candidates will be a waste in view of APC’s victory at the centre.

    He made the appeal while speaking on an MITV programme monitored in Ibadan, the state capital Monday.

    The governor said any vote for Accord, Labour Party (LP) or Social Democratic Party (SDP) is a vote for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which he said has already crumbled in Nigeria.

    He said having demonstrated their love for change and progressives by voting massively for the APC presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) and its National Assembly candidates in the state open March 28, Oyo State cannot afford to opt out and operate as an opposition state again.

    According to him, several initiatives of his administration which required the approval or cooperation of the Federal Government could not succeed because of Federal Government’s refusal to play its role. But now that the APC has taken over the Federal Government, Ajimobi urged voters to repeat the same massive support for him and the party in the April 11 election as demonstrated in the last election.

    Declaring that he was confident of victory in the Saturday election, the governor recalled that his policies have endeared him to the people of the state who appreciate his transformation, reformation and repositioning agenda.

    “We are confident of victory by the grace of God and by the love people have for us as demonstrated in the last election,” he said.

    He recalled that his administration has succeeded in enthroning peace, improving social infrastructure including construction of modern roads and improved water supply in Iseyin, Ayete, Saki, and Ibadan, among others.

    He also pointed out that eight big companies sprang up in the state in the last three years due to the enabling environment created by his administration.

    He expressed his appreciation to the people for the massive support for APC in the last election, stressing that Oyo State contributed most to the success of the APC in the entire Southwest. The party won the three senatorial seats and 12 out of 14 House of Representatives seats.

    “Oyo State people have demonstrated their acceptance of progress and change. They should repeat the same thing on Saturday.

    “Don’t waste your vote, I beg you. If you vote for Accord, it’s PDP. If you vote for SDP, it is PDP. If you vote for Labour. It is also PDP. And PDP has crumbled as you know,” Ajimobi said.

  • ‘Ajimobi aided my success’

    The lawmaker-elect to represent Oluyole Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Olusunbo Olugbemi, has attributed his victory to the achievement and good works of Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

    In a statement in Ibadan yesterday, Olugbemi thanked the people of his constituency, leaders and executives of All Progressives Congress (APC) for their support during the presidential and National Assembly election.

    He called on the people to vote for Governor Ajimobi and Wahab Abiodun on Saturday to ensure continuity and good governance.

  • ‘Hausa, Igbo will vote for Ajimobi’

    ‘Hausa, Igbo will vote for Ajimobi’

    The leaders of the Hausa and Igbo communities in Oyo State have pledged their support to ensure that their kinsmen vote for Governor Abiola Ajimobi in the April 11 elections.

    The Ezendigbo of Ibadanland, Eze Alex Anozie, and a leader of Hausa community in Sabo, Alh Yahaya Baba-Ahmed, spoke in separate interviews in Ibadan yesterday.

    Anozie said he was one of the advocates of “Ajimobi must continue”, adding that the governor has achieved unprecedented records in the state and needs to be supported to complete his projects.

    “The April 11 elections will be free, fair and credible and I am mobilising my people to vote for Ajimobi and APC candidates because I believe four years is not enough for any government to achieve reasonable growth.

    “I am not partial, all other governorship candidates are good but Ajimobi has surpassed them and needs to be voted in again for continuity and development,” he said.

    Anozie added that voters should not be deceived by the campaign of calumny against Ajimobi that he has demolished shops.

    “Demolition was not done in Oyo State alone, it was done in most states and it was even worse in some states.”

    Baba-Ahmed, who is also a leader of All Progressives Congress (APC), said apart from what the Ajimobi administration has done for his community, residents are eager to vote for him because of Muhammadu Buhari’s victory.

    He said in the state’s history no government has included his kinsmen in his cabinet, but the governor appointed a Hausa man as a Special Adviser on Arewa community.

    His words: “Governor Ajimobi has a listening ear and he is a people friendly governor who has a passion for the needs of the people at the grassroots.

    “A vote for Ajimobi is a vote for development of my people also. He donated a transformer to us when we were in darkness, empowered our people with free motorcycles and he is renovating our central mosque.”

    He warned former Governor Adebayo Alao- Akala to desist from deceiving the masses with his posters that Buhari supports his ambition.

  • ‘Gang-up against Ajimobi will fail’

    ‘Gang-up against Ajimobi will fail’

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) won the three senatorial and 12 House of Representatives seats in the March 28 election. As a response, the four other major parties in the election came together to form an alliance against Governor Abiola Ajimobi who is the candidate of the APC  in the April 11 governorship election. But the chairman of the APC in Oyo State, Chief Akin Oke, in this interview with Bisi Oladele and Bisola Oloyede, emphasised that the alliance would fail. He also spoke on other issues around the election

    Your party won three senatorial and 12 House of Representatives seats in the March 28 election in the state, as you approach the governorship election, whatare your party’s feelings now?

    We give all glory to Almighty God and also thank the people of Oyo State for the unprecedented result. In fact, it was unbelievable to the opposition. We give all glory to God again. We feel good on it and we are approaching the next election with confidence in God to make it happen again

    Your success in this last election is unprecedented. How did you do it?

    I will not say it is unprecedented because the last time we had this kind of result was in 1979, when Osun State was still part of Oyo State. That was the election that brought in the late Chief Bola Ige. You will recall that was an election where it was only in Ogbomoso that we lost. We won all other places in the state. The honourable members we had in the House of Assembly were from Ogbomoso then. Ogbomoso was the only place we lost, just like what happened now.

    Does it mean Ogbomoso has not always been going with the progressives?

    Well, I will say what happened can be traced back to the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Ladoke Akintola’s disagreement. Because before that disagreement, Ogbomoso used to be part  of the progressives. And, I believe that in no time, Ogbomoso will have no choice than to support, particularly now that we have won the federal.

    I will be surprised if we do not win some seats in Ogbomoso come April 11. I will not write off Ogbomoso for now. We will work harder. I hail from Ogbomoso, we are working hard and I assure you there will be surprises from Ogbomoso this time around.

     A lot of people believe that the popularity and victory of APC in Oyo State is as a result of the massive support General Muhammadu Buhari enjoyed across the country. What is your view on this?

    Well, that may be a factor but I can assure you that is not the only factor. Because if you take a look at states where APC control, you will see that they performed. So, I will say that the Buhari factor is one, the performances of the state governors is another factor. And of course, people are fed up with 16 years of misrule by PDP. They want something different and things to change. And coincidentally, our party decided to use “Change” as its slogan. And the change fits in very well. So, most of the intellectuals, elites, and those that normally do not vote bought into our slogan. And it worked like magic. And we thank God.

    Opposition parties in the state have been going around saying the candidature of Buhari helped APC in Oyo to win the National Assembly seats.  What is the frame of mind of the APC members as they prepare for the April 11 election?

    Well, that is what they choose to say. I read about what the Resident Electoral Commissioner said to their allegation that the election was rigged in favour of APC. The people want change and are in support of continuity. They want us to control the federal, the state and the lower divisions. So that there will be no excuses of no payment of salaries because money will be flowing. All the federal allocations that have been hidden will be released. In terms of our economy in Oyo State, we have been prudent. If we have a federal that is prudent, that is pre-disposed to every state in terms of allocation, not taking in the impunity that is commonly known in PDP, then the state will prosper. The people in Oyo State are reasonable, wise and I am sure they will give in to Ajimobi come April 11.

    Talking about financial prudence, the civil servants in Oyo State are complaining about unpaid salaries and it is believed that it can work against the governor’s re-election. Don’t you think so?

    I am surprised to hear that from you. The civil servants and the teachers know that their salary is not being paid because the state has not been paid. We are owing February and March salaries only because we  are yet to receive February and March allocation. Comparatively, our neighbors in other states are owing five months salary and so on. We are owning just a month and hopefully within two to three days it will be paid. So, I do not think any teacher or civil servant has an excuse not to vote for Ajimobi if they fear God. Nobody, none of the previous governments has done what Ajimobi has done for them.

    As you go to the governorship poll in Oyo State, what is your message to the people?

     My candid message is that first, I want to thank them. They have done very well for us and we appreciate them for that. What is happening now was what Chief Awolowo wanted and it never happened. That is a situation whereby SouthWest, that is the Yoruba as a group, will be working with the Hausa and Fulani. This is going to be the first time, when Igbos are going to be in the opposition. The Yorubas have always been the main opposition. And I am not surprised, the expectation of the whole world is very high because these two zones have the knowledge, the drive for governance. Really, I am not surprised. Now there is going to be unprecedented development in the country. I am appealing to our people in Oyo State, now that we have APC at the central, come April 11, they should vote Abiola Ajimobi so that we will now have APC at the top, that is federal level, the state, which is the middle and the bottom.

    How confident are you that you will win this election?

     By the grace of God and the support of the people of Oyo State, I have great confidence that we are going to win. Take a look at the analysis of the party, the performance of each party at the senatorial level, the House of Representatives level and so on. I heard they (the oppositions) are ganging up, their ego will not allow them to gang up successfully.

  • ‘I’ve not seen governor like Ajimobi since I got to Ibadan 56 years ago’

    ‘I’ve not seen governor like Ajimobi since I got to Ibadan 56 years ago’

    You are a renowned artiste. What motivated you to wax an album for the re-election of Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State?

    I know the nooks and crannies of Ibadan very well because I have lived in the city for many decades. The reasons why I waxed an album for the re-election of Governor Abiola Ajimobi are many. I’ve not seen a performing governor like Ajimobi since I got to Ibadan 56 years ago. The only time we witnessed things like these was during the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s era when he recorded many firsts like the first television in Africa, NTA, the then Liberty Stadium, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), and  Cocoa House. It was during those days that I last saw things like these. What Ajimobi has done amazes me. The environment has totally been changed, which made the Olubadan in-Council to bestow on him the Aare Atunluse of Ibadanland. This is in appreciation of the transformation Ajimobi has brought to the state. And that motivated me that a performing governor must be supported by all and sundry. If we allow him do another term, he is going to surpass all his predecessors combined.

    Why are you supporting Governor Ajimobi of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and not someone from the opposition camp?

    Well, as for me, I see APC as the best party. It is a party of great Nigerians. See the leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; he is the best leader I have ever seen. He is not a shameless leader like his contemporaries from the South West. He is not greedy. He loves progressiveness. See what Ibikunle, Rauf Aregbesola, Raji Fashola etc are doing in the various states. Let me tell you something, the people of Ogun State will regret if they fail to re-elect Ibikunle Amosun. The man has really tried. Ajimobi has also tried. If Tinubu were to be like others, we would not have found ourselves where we are. He fits into Awolowo’s shoes; taking us to greatness. If Awolowo were to be alive, he would not have aligned with those elders acting otherwise. Awolowo would not have worked with a party like PDP

  • Ajimobi urges peace over Ibadan kidnappers’ den

    Ajimobi urges peace over Ibadan kidnappers’ den

    There was tension in Adekile Goodwill area of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, following the killing of a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) and two others.

    It was gathered that the killings occurred after the discovery of a kidnappers’ den in a house in the area.

    The Nation gathered that a child, who had been reported missing several days ago, was found in the underground apartment of the house.

    The police were said to have been alerted to the development, which led to the arrest of the owner of the building.

    The incident reportedly angered the youth in the community and they mobilised to destroy the building.

    But the police were said to have prevented them.

    This further infuriated the youth and they resorted to stoning the policemen. In the melee, a policeman and two others were killed.

    An eyewitness said: “The angry youths were many but the policemen were very few.

    “I learnt that they killed a policeman. The police also killed two youths in retaliation.”

    Soldiers have been drafted in the community. The irate youths were also said to have attacked the soldiers before they were dispersed with teargas.

    Police spokesman Adekunle Ajisebutu confirmed that some suspects have been arrested.

    He said:”I am not entitled to talk yet about the situation. The commissioner will brief the press when due, because any information released now may jeopardise the investigation.”

    Governor Abiola Ajimobi  appealed to the people to avoid violence and disruption of peace.

    He spoke when he and the Commissioner of Police, Muhammed Katsina, visited the area.

    When the governor and his entourage got to the scene, three buildings had been vandalised and set ablaze.

    Katsina said:  “The slain police officer went to Adekile in response to a distress call by a resident, who alleged that her baby was kidnapped and kept inside a building at Adekile.

    “The DPO visited the area and inspected the building in question but could not find anything related to the lodged complaint.

    “As he was explaining to the youth to remain calm, the DPO was attacked and shot in the head.

    “The DPO, being a gallant officer before he fell to the miscreants’ bullets, also managed to fire at his attacker, who also died on the way to the hospital.”

    He reiterated the commitment of the Force to ensure that all the perpetrators were arrested.

  • Why Ajimobi should be re-elected

    SIR: As the 2015 gubernatorial election draws nearer, the good people of Oyo State will do themselves good if they re-elect Governor Abiola Ajimobi for another term in office as he has not only surprised the people of the State but outsiders as well.

    Since the former senator came on board as governor of the Pace-setter State, he has left no one in doubt as to his capacity to deliver within the shortest possible time. Right from the beginning, he had a vision for a new Oyo State and commenced work towards making it a reality.

    Abiola Ajimobi nipped violence in the bud in the state by first proscribing the activities of the National Union of Road Transport Workers following the June 4, 2011 unrest at Iwo-Road area of the state which led to the death of the national president of Medical Students’ Association and other innocent souls. In fact, it was one day, one trouble, especially in major cities across our dear state before he was sworn-in. He swung into action, telling those who cared to listen that insecurity was the major obstacle to the state’s growth.

    After persuasion from several quarters, the governor lifted the ban on activities of the NURTW but not without a warning that they must never resort to violence is settling disputes among its members.

    The peace that followed that has given birth to many investors trooping in to the once investor-unfriendly state. Before 2011, there was just one private radio station, but now we have seven. Any frequent visitor to Challenge/Oluyole areas could bear witness to the number of  new companies that have evolved there.

    Apart from this, the environment is now a beauty to behold as the state capital, which was listed as one of the dirtiest states four years ago, is now among the cleanest states. Those who pass through Iwo-Road and Challenge areas of Ibadan before this administration came on board will bear witness to the environmental reform carried out by Governor Ajimobi. The employment of the 20, 000 youths through the Youth Empowerment Scheme of Oyo State (YES-O) is second to none. We should all join hands to commend the governor for this initiative because it is not easy to cough out N20, 000, 000 monthly in this time of dwindling allocation from the national purse.

    To be able to sustain this peace and development, the people of the State need to re-elect Ajimobi.

     

    • Gbadegesin Adegoke

    Ibadan, Oyo State.