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  • Five injured in ‘attack’ on Osun APC members

    Five injured in ‘attack’ on Osun APC members

    •PDP: they assaulted us

    No fewer than five persons were critically injured yesterday in Iponda, Obokun Local Government Area of Osun State, in a clash between Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) supporters and All Progressives Congress (APC) members.

    It was gathered that the APC members were celebrating Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s re-election when they were attacked.

    Some APC members, who sustained deep machete cuts, were rushed to the hospital, where they are on admission.

    One of the victims, Deji Akanmu (Ward 4), was stabbed in the head.

    An Assistant Director in the Bureau of Communication and Strategy in the Office of the Governor, Mr. Bosun Oyintiloye, who is from the area, described the attack as barbaric.

    He said the incident was reported to the police division in Ibokun.

    However, the Media Director of Senator Iyiola Omisore’s Campaign Organisation, Prince Diran Odeyemi, said it was the APC members that attacked PDP supporters.

    Odeyemi said: “We are surprised that despite the APC’s victory in Saturday’s election, its members have continued to harass, maim and humiliate supporters of our party across the state. We urge Governor Aregbesola to call them to order before the situation gets out of hand.”

  • ‘Expect shocking revelations about Ekiti poll’

    ‘Expect shocking revelations about Ekiti poll’

    There will be shocking revelations at the hearing of the petition instituted by Ekiti State All Progressives Congress (APC) on the June 21 governorship election, Deputy Governor Modupe Adelabu said yesterday.

    She said the election was skewed against her party by the powers that be.

    Mrs Adelabu said Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s victory on Saturday proved that no amount of “federal might” could subvert the people’s will. She described it as a call for change.

    The deputy governor and Governor Kayode Fayemi’s wife, Bisi, visited Aregbesola in Osogbo to congratulate him.

    In a statement by her media aide, Bunmi Ogunmodede,  Mrs Adelabu urged Nigerians to effect positive change through the 2015 general polls.

    She said: “We have come to rejoice with our brother, whose mandate for a fresh four-year term has been renewed. We are grateful to God for what he has done for us. We are happy for the governor. He deserves it and we know the people of Osun State will enjoy his second term. I believe he is going to perform better than he is doing in this first term, which expires in November.

    “We are using his (Aregbesola’s) re-election as a point of contact for other states, so that in 2015, there will be a change at the centre. What we have seen in Osun State is a revelation of what happened in Ekiti State on June 21. We thank God that we made the sacrifice in Ekiti State.”

  • How Osun poll was won and lost

    How Osun poll was won and lost

    A combination of record of sterling performance in office, ability to bond with the grassroots and campaign messages that resonated with voters helped Governor Rauf Aregbesola of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to defeat his main challenger and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Iyiola Omisore. In this report, Assistant Editor ADEKUNLE YUSUF examines other factors that shaped the election.

    The governorship election in Osun State was widely expected to end in bloodshed, particularly if the electoral sovereignty of the people was subverted. But, rather, the state erupted into wild jubilation in celebration of the re-election of Governor Rauf Aregbesola. It was perceived as a well-deserved victory for  the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Except in Ile-Ife, where people were seen brooding over the loss of an opportunity of having a son of the soil on the number seat, men and women – old and young — took to the dancing floor as if a statewide party had been declared. From Ikirun to Osogbo, capital of Osun State, and almost all major towns and communities, it was partying galore. Many residents drank to stupor, while some drove recklessly, waving the broom, the symbol of the APC.

    To secure another four years in office, Aregbesola polled a total of 394, 684 votes to defeat his main challenger and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Iyiola Omisore, who got 292,753 votes. In an election that was adjudged to be generally peaceful and credible, Aregbesola trounced Omisore in 22 out of 30 local government areas in the state, which satisfied the constitutional requirements of winning in at least two-thirds of the councils. With this feat, Aregbesola has become the first governor in the history of the 23-year old state to win a re-election.

    Addressing thousands of residents who had gathered at the popular Freedom Park in Osogbo, Aregbesola said he is humbled by the victory, promising that the show of genuine love and appreciation by the people will make him to further rededicate himself to the service of the state. “I have never doubted your love and genuine appreciation. I can only thank you. I thank you all,” he said in an emotionally charged tone.  The equally ecstatic audience responded by waving of broomsticks and shouts of “change, change, change.”

    Tortuous road to victory

    Although Aregbesola won the election convincingly, the road to victory was not smooth for him. Since the resurgence of the PDP in the state since last year, Aregbesola has battled to maintain the firm grip his party initially enjoyed on Osun politics. He had had to continually explain and re-explain policies of the administration, which the opposition sought to discredit to curry favour. Omisore, who had spent time and stupendous resources to breathe life into tattered remnants of the PDP left behind by former governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola, was often busy taking policies and actions of the state government to the cleaners — which some say worked to some extent.

    For example, the PDP worked very hard to profit from the demolition of several houses in Osogbo, which was done either to pave way for the dualisation of some roads or give the state a facelift through the government’s urban renewal intervention. The opposition also sought to reap from controversies that brewed over the school merging and reclassification policy of Aregbesola, by allegedly sponsoring and fanning the fire of acrimony between Muslims and Christians over wearing of hijab to public schools.

     

    Campaigns of calumny

    Throughout the campaigns, Aregbesola’s APC was incessantly lampooned by the PDP attack dogs as lacking in internal democracy. They did not just cast aspersions on him, his policies were derided and villified as anti-people, using propaganda that confused not a few. Diran Odeyemi, Director of Publicity of Omisore Campaign Organisation, bashed Aregbesola and his party to no end, labeling him a religious fundamentalist. Omisore and his team never acknowledged that anything good had been done by the sitting administration. The PDP also branded the APC as a party that is not domiciling the economy of the state. It alleged that all the plum contracts were being handled by those it called the Lagos Boys, and promised that the party would send them back to Lagos. “There is no water project anywhere. The roads are bad across the state. Government is a serious business; it is not for jobbers. It is not for unserious people. Look at our debt profile now; it is about N438 billion and there is nothing on (the) ground to show for it. He has no reason to owe any worker in this state. He has no business owing O’YES cadets or not funding the project he started. But because he has a master in Lagos, Bola Tinubu, it is an ajele relationship. He is repatriating our money to Lagos,” Omisore alleged in one of his interviews before the poll.

    According to the PDP flag bearer, and his campaigners, almost all the laudable interventions of Aregbesola in education, health and other sectors will be changed, if not done away with outrightly, if given the chance to govern the state. Comrade Amitolu Shittu, who is the Director-General of De Raufs Volunteer Group, which championed the ideals and re-election Aregbesola, said the spin game of the PDP did not resonate with the people because they appreciate the changing face of Osun under the APC, especially those who believe that the state would be the loser if the numerous ongoing projects in the state are not completed due to lack of continuity in government. The notable human rights activist added that the “game would probably have been different had Omisore acknowledged the monumental achievements of Aregbesola and promise to improve on them,” for the people believe in Aregbesola who is generally perceived as a passionate leader.

    But the PDP got its match in Kunle Oyatomi, state publicity secretary of the APC. In an equally vicious manner, Oyatomi constantly reminded the people that Omisore’s sudden adoption of local appellations, identifying and eating with the common people on the streets, buying items from petty traders and paying in multiple fold, as well as distributing foodstuffs to the electorate were barefaced baits to seduce voters. But the APC handlers, suspicious that Omisore’s sudden modesty might be a fraudulent tactic to gain undeserved advantage, effectively cast him in the mould of a thug, hooligan and devil — an antithesis of the Omoluabi ethos upon which the state prides itself.

     

    Omisore’s antecedents

    Perhaps buoyed by the easy electoral victory of Ayodele Fayose, the party’s Ekiti State governor-elect, Omisore’s campaign team laboured in vain throughout the electioneering exercise to make him look like Fayose. Although it is an undeniable fact that Omisore lacks Fayose’s charisma and touch with the masses, he was desperate to be portrayed as another Fayose in Osun. But the attempt flopped. Omisore, who won election into the Senate in 2003, while in the prison custody, uncharacteristically rode on a motorcycle and displayed two pieces of roasted corn he had bought on his way to the campaign ground. Despite having a huge war chest and the support of the PDP-led federal government, Omisore battled unsuccessfully to wriggle out of his Achille’s heel: his association with the assassination of Bola Ige, former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, who was a highly respected son of the state. Though he has been discharged and acquitted, the PDP candidate was sufficiently tainted by the accusation of his involvement in Ige’s murder. His bizarre and lacklustre campaign, which was a poor carricature of Fayose’s, was unable to wash him clean of this.

    At the well-attended APC mega rally in Osogbo last Wednesday where Oyinlola defected from the PDP to the APC, the immediate past governor of the state delivered a speech extempore that further exposed Omisore’s character flaws. In the speech, Oyinlola described him an egoist and sadist. “Omisore is greedy and selfish. I don’t know who killed Bola Ige. But the person nominated by Omisore to replace me as national secretary of the PDP was with him in prison (when Omisore was standing trial for Ige’s murder); the person he nominated as minister of police affairs (Jelili Adesiyan) was with him in prison too; the person who is being nominated to run for Osun Central senatorial district seat (Kunle Alao) was also with him in jail); the state chairman (Gani Olaoluwa) was also with him in jail. It is only his deputy governorship candidate (Adejare Bello) that did not go to jail with them. Are we saying that if we don’t go to jail we cannot lead,” Oyinlola asked, which punctured in no small measure Omisore’s already fragile reputation.

     

    Aregbesola’s performance

    Rather than getting carried away by campaigns of calumny by the PDP, Aregbesola’s team embarked on a blitzkrieg of a campaign, largely issues-based, ably directed and coordinated by the irrepressible Senator Sola Adeyeye. The party flaunted its achievements, which the people can see, and used opportunities of its rallies to address controversial issues that could have spelt doom for the incumbent governor’s chances. The establishment of Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (O‘YES), which is said to have employed over 40,000, was also a deft stroke that worsened Omisore’s chances. Not only were the youths engaged, they helped to broaden Aregbesola’s support base. So was his programme in education, which is unprecedented in the history of the state.

    Besides building mega schools with super infrastructures and modern appurtenances that many residents found unbelievable, he equally introduced programmes such the O’Meals that feeds hundreds of thousand of students daily, and another for clothing of students. These populist programmes endeared the governor to parents and students alike. The construction on many township roads and ambitious dualisation projects embarked upon by the state gave Aregbesola a public perception as an excellent public administrator. At Biket Hospital junction in Osogbo, a boy of about 12 years was seen campaigning vigorously for the APC at night a day before the election. His reason for idolising Aregbesola is as a result of the government’s intervention in education, especially how the governor identifies with students by wearing their uniform.

    However, rather than just basking in the euphoria of its record of sterling achievements in the last three and a half years, the APC campaign team, as a brilliant way of laying the issues bare before the electorate, framed the just-concluded election not just as a contest between Aregbesola and Omisore. It deftly primed the race as a competition between the forces of progress and backwardness, hope and despair, as well as those of light and darkness, asking people to choose whatever they wanted. As if it is the underdog in the race, the APC mounted a fierce campaign that took it to all the nooks and crannies of the state, beckoning residents to compare what has been achieved in almost four years under Aregbesola with the previous administration under the PDP that lasted more than seven years. Using all means available, the governor’s team sold his candidature to the public as a caring and pro-masses leader that can do more, if given the opportunity to do so.

    In the words of Senator Jide Omoworare, representing Osun East, the election was a contest between popularity and notoriety, saying with aplomb that Osun State will not want to go back to Egypt — an apparent reference to Omisore’s antecedents, which many find not too attractive in a state that prides itself as the home of the Omoluabi. “We had no doubt about our chances to win. Our candidate is popular, while their own is notorious. If election is a popularity contest, we will win easily because we are confident that our people will not want to go back to Egypt,” he said.

     

    Disunity in PDP

    Apart from character differences between the two major candidates in the election, the perception in Yorubaland that the PDP-led federal government is anti-Southwest is another factor that hurt the prospects of Omisore. Residents were constantly reminded that this is the first time any administration at the federal level will relegate the zone to irrelevance in the scheme of things in the country. Oyinlola made it a huge campaign issue during the APC mega rally in Osogbo that President Goodluck Jonathan has been unfair to and disdainful of the Southwest, pointing to the lopsidedness that has characterised appointments and sharing of major political offices during the last four administration. APC chieftains and afficionados drummed it into people’s ears that the administration of the PDP under President Jonathan has not executed any project in the state. When this issue came up during the mega rally of the PDP, which took place before that of the APC, President Jonathan merely asked Osun residents to cast their votes for Omisore, saying he will tell them what he intends to do for the state by the time he comes back on a visit to the state.

    Another masterstroke that fetched Aregbesola the victory song is the disunity in the PDP, which triggered mass defections from its fold to the APC. Due to irreconcilable differences and the general perception of Omisore as not the best for the state, many top chieftains of the party in the state left the fold specifically for that reason. Although the PDP spokespersons consistently maintained that the defections would not hurt the party, Omisore went into the poll with a battered army of followers without the requisite input of movers and shakers of the party in the state that made things tick in the past. Apart from Oyinlola who left the PDP with thousands of his followers, Isiaka Adeleke is another influential former governor who quit the self-styled largest political party in Africa to augment the camp of the APC. By the time the votes were counted, it was obvious that the PDP did not recover from the bruises left behind by a wave of mass defections that hit it. In Ede North and South, which traditionally were regarded as PDP strongholds, Aregbesola won resoundingly in the two local government areas — a feat partly made possible by Adeleke who is fondly called Serubawon by his people. Similar things happened in many other places that the APC would have found difficult to make an inroad.

     

    Aregbesola’s grassroots

     support

    Being a man that is well schooled in the art of politics, Aregbesola has run an administration that is not defective in marrying governance and politicking. Right from his assumption of office in 2010, the governor has developed and implemented strategies that helped him bond with the people. Having branded himself as Oranmiyan, a progenitor the Yoruba respect and adore forever, the governor left no one in doubt that his is an unusual administration that does not want to leave any segment behind. Aregbesola, a fair-minded and God-fearing politician, is seen generally in the state as a governor that is always trying to please everybody and group — be it Muslims, Christians and traditionalists. That is perhaps why his candidature was backed by several organisations, including the labour unions. He also enjoyed the backing of several mushroom groups such as the De Raufs Volunteer Group, The Oranmiya, The Vanguard, Total Victory Group, among others, which worked tirelessly promoting his candidature.

    Boasting about his chances before the election, Aregbesola said he is a product of the popular forces. “I am a product of the popular forces, the people, and I am part and parcel of them. I emanated from them and I am a product of their struggles. What is known as stomach infrastructure is what we know as interaction, engagement, living with the people and meeting their aspirations and needs. That is what I have been doing from the beginning of this administration. I identify with them on a daily basis in their struggle to live and they understand that everything we do is to make life easy for them. My administration does not suffer from alienation from the people; it is one and the same with the people and that is the basis of our confidence in their ever-ready support at all times,” Aregbesola said in an interview before the polls.

     

    Osun’s geo-political

    demographics

    On the whole, another big factor that helped to sideline Omisore is the geography of birth of the two political gladiators. Interestingly, for the first time in the history of the state, both Aregbesola and Omisore hail from the same Osun East senatorial district, regarded as the largest in the state in terms of voting strength. However, while Omisore, a Christian, is from Ile Ife, Aregbesola, a devout Muslim, hails from Ilesa. The same district is populated mainly by Christians. Though Omisore won in Ile Ife, which has four local government areas and more voting strength than Ilesa, which has two local government areas, he could not get enough votes to dance the victory dance. The reason is that Aregbesola’s Ilesa, an Ijesa community, enjoys same historical, cultural and linguistic affinities with other comunities in Ijesaland such as those in Oriade, Obokun, Atatkunmosa East and Atakunmosa West local government areas — all comprising six local government areas. All these delivered a block vote for Aregbesola. A breakdown of the result announced by INEC showed that the APC won in the following local government areas: Ilesa East (16,106), Ilesa West (15,427), Oriade (12,523), Atakumosa West (6,928), Atakumosa East (9,287),  and Obokun (11,696), while the PDP pocketed votes only in Ife South (12,811), Ife North (9,841), Ife Central (24,555), and Ife East (20,831).

    Although the state is known for its liberal nature in terms of religion, it is an issue that sometimes plays a defining factor in the politics of the state. Aregbesola, a Muslim from a predominantly Christian-dominated section of the state, enjoys a statewide popularity. That is why Aregbesola was embraced in other parts of the state, especially in communities that are predominantly Muslim, who see him as one of their own. Unlike Omisore that garnered votes mainly in his areas, Aregbesola enjoys massive popularity and support outside his place of birth, especially in predominantly Muslim-dominated areas such as Osogbo, Ikirun, Iwo, Ede, Iragbiji, Ejigbo, Ila Orangun, Ikire and other communities, which backed him solidly with their votes despite the siege on the state by heavily armed security agents that the PDP-led federal government deployed to the state.  All this and many more robbed Omisore, who had reportedly boasted that he would rather die if he did not win the election, of chances  to sing the victory song.

  • Osun: The morning after

    Osun: The morning after

    All is quiet now in the aftermath of the governorship election in Osun State, bar the exuberant rejoicing in re-elected Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s circle, which stretches all the way from Osogbo to Bourdillon Road in Ikoyi, Lagos, the grieving in Aso Rock and in Wadata Plaza and the gnashing of teeth in the palaces of some wayward monarchs.

    Make no mistake about it:  The election was a contest between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Ogbeni Aregbesola, on the one hand, and President Goodluck Jonathan, and the entire apparatus of the Federal Government on the other, with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Iyiola Omisore, playing along as bit actors.

    With the Federal Juggernaut behind you – slush money, logistics, the police, the army, the secret service, clandestine armed services of no known provenance, and the desperate craving to “capture” more opposition territory – with these and much more behind you, who can stand in your way?

    Besides, the governorship election in Ekiti two months earlier had not only pointed up a winning formula that accorded sophomoric stunts a greater salience than solid achievement, it had also shown that the entire Southwest was politically ripe for the picking.

    But something went horribly wrong on the way to the orchard.

    The would-be harvesters suffered a comprehensive sandbagging.

    All the intimidating display of force and might, the warrantless arrest of officials and operatives of the governing party in the state, the bullying, the stoking of religious differences, the claim to possession of private facts that showed Omisore not only leading but coasting to victory —everything ended in a puff, “just like that,” to borrow a phasing from Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the Afro-beat king.

    Such was the compass of the intimidation that Chief Isiaka “Serubawon” Adeleke, who once governed the state on the Caligula Principle —”You can hate us, so long as you fear us” — was driven by fear to flee his home in Ede and go into hiding as the Federal Juggernaut widened the reach of its ravenous dragnet.

    At Aso Rock and in the palaces of the wayward monarchs and in Wadata Plaza and in the ranks of Dr Jonathan’s private army of ghost “public affairs analysts” and “public affairs commentators”, who invariably live in Abuja, they must be wondering how what was supposed to be an easy take-over turned into a comprehensive rout of the would-be receivers.

    They conveniently forgot that Osun is not Ekiti.  Believing that the dividends of democracy begin and end in the stomach, they could not see beyond the stomachs of the electorate. Accordingly, they tailored their messages to appeal to that organ and its immediate satiation. They mis- apprehended an outlier, an aberration, for a trend.  They willfully set aside the public record and stuck with their private facts.

    And so, what was supposed to serve as a bridgehead for the capture of the Southwest in Dr Jonathan’s all-but-certain presidential run in 2015 ended up as the graveyard of that strategy. They will now have to go back to the drawing board on that one.  And, despite the gain in Ekiti, his faction of the National Governors Forum remains a minority; the most it can hope for is parity in membership with the group from which it was suborned to defect.

    The Osun verdict is on one level a personal triumph for the austere and driven Rauf Aregbesola.  Unlike some who stumbled into office in a fit of absent-mindedness or were dragooned into it, he entered office fully prepared, a man with a mission, armed with blueprints for transforming the      State of Osun.  From his first day in office, he has pursued his progressive agenda with a singularity of purpose that has alienated some around him who regard political office not as a summons to service but an invitation to eat, drink and be merry.

    The election outcome is also a victory for Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the National Leader of the victorious APC.  Following the party’s freak defeat in the Ekiti governorship race, some commentators had begun to script his political obituary.  They said he was waning as a political force in his Southwest redoubt, and was headed for the abyss.

    It is not the first or the second time such things are being said of him, and it won’t be the last. Those counting him must be prepared for a long wait. The man’s capacity for resurgence is simply astonishing.

    The election was in a way a proving ground for the Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, whom I got to know quite well when he served as a consultant to the Editorial Board of The Guardian, where I was chair of the board and editorial page editor.

    He acquitted himself magnificently, displaying the intelligence, the sharp, analytic mind, the capacity for sustained engagement, the eloquence, the resoluteness and the forthrightness that made him one of the youngest, if not the youngest person to be appointed permanent secretary in the Federal Civil Service.

    The decisiveness with which he moved the APC machinery to Osogbo to counter the designs of the Federal Might was vintage Oyegun.  He is not combative by nature, but he is not afraid of a fight. You can count on him to fight a good fight.

    I cannot recall the context now, but in one of the many conversations I had with General Olusegun Obasanjo during visits to his farm in Ota, I mentioned that Oyegun had marked his 55th birthday lately.  Obasanjo, who is as flinty with praise as he is with his money, spoke glowingly of Oyegun who served with him when he was head of state.

    He asked me to convey to Oyegun his desire to host a birthday luncheon for him, his family and friends. The luncheon did take place, several weeks later.

    That is a measure of the esteem in which Oyegun is held.

    The on-again, off-again candidate of the Labour Party, Fatai Akinbade, finished as an also-ran.  But he provided a comic relief that dispelled somewhat the high tension that marked the vote tallying. Losing on every turf and registering for the most part less than token presence, his spokesperson nevertheless called on the candidates of the APC and the PDP to withdraw if they felt threatened by Akinade’s profile.

    At this writing, Omisore has not conceded.  The man, who could win election to the Senate from prison where he was being held as a suspect in the prosecution of the murder of the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige, has now twice failed to win election from the outside. He lost his re-election bid to the Senate, and was crushed in his governorship quest.

    His political future is uncertain.  Dr. Jonathan may well compensate him with a ministerial appointment, an ambassadorial post, or some other sinecure.

    In whatever case, you will never see Omisore again riding an okada or devouring a cob of roast corn purchased from a street vendor.

     

     

     

  • APC, PDP and battle for 2015

    APC, PDP and battle for 2015

    Despite its victory at the governorship election, the Osun State All Progressives Congress (APC) has another hurdle to cross at next year’s parliamentary polls, if the pattern of results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is sustained. Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the challenges ahead.

    Osun State All Progressives Congress (APC) has survived the federal onslaught. But, it has more hurdles to cross as next year’s elections into the House of Assembly and the National Assembly draw near. Although Governor Rauf Aregbesola has secured a second term, the party, according to analysts, must not sleep on guard.

    As an observer put it, “the euphoria of victory should wither immediately because there more challenges ahead and more work to do”. The next battle is the parliamentary election.  The outcome of the governorship poll has implications for the next contest.

    Political watchers are of the opinion that how the election was fought played an important role. Other factors that played an important role was the candidates’ origin. While the PDP flag bearer, Senator Iyiola Omisore won massively in four local governments in Ife, Aregbesola got a massive endorsement at Ilesa, his native local government.

    According to the final results released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the APC got 394, 684 votes. The PDP had 292, 747 votes. The 101,937 margin is a bit wide, but it means that the APC has a sizeable support. The APC has overwhelming support in 22 local governments. The PDP has roots in eight councils. To have a breakthrough at the parliamentary election, not only should the APC guard its strongholds jealously, it must also work hard to regain the confidence of the eight states.

    In Bolorunduro Local Government Area, the PDP had 5,035 votes. The APC had 4,891 votes. In Odo-Otin, both parties ran neck. The margin between 11,950 scored by the APC and 12, 902 got by the PDP is 1,048. Many factors will influence the parliamentary poll, which is more local. But, the pattern suggests that the PDP has a bright chance at the parliamentary poll like the APC. In Isokan, the APC had 9,758 and the PDP 10,028.  In Ayedire, APC had 7,724 and PDP 7813. This means that the two parties have substantial influence and support in these areas.

    Statistically, it could be inferred that Ife has slipped away from the APC. In 2011 elections, the four local governments supported the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). But, the four local governments-Ife North, East, Central and South voted massively for the PDP. If this trend is sustained in 2015, then, the APC would have to rely on votes from Ijesa axis to neutralise the effects of the bloc votes from Ife.

    In Ife Central, PDP got 24,555. It was a wide departure from APC’s 9,680. In Ife East, PDP got 20,831. The APC polled 13,821.  In Ife North, the margin is not too wide. While the PDP secured 9,841 votes, the APC got 8,603. In Ife South, the PDP got 12, 811 votes and APC had 7,325. The margin is wide.

     

  • Winners and losers

    Winners and losers

    Both the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) prepared well for the governorship election. But, there were some principal characters whose involvement shaped the contest. These stakeholders are the winners and losers of the contest.

     

    Winners: APC

    Few months ago, the party was down in Ekiti State. During the governorship election, its candidate, Governor Kayode Fayemi, lost to the PDP candidate, Mr. Ayodele Fayose. The outcome of the poll was surprising because the governor has performed in office. The PDP had boasted that its victory meant that it was now well positioned to recapture the Southwest. But, the it is now a draw. The APC has maintained its hold in Osun, despite its defeat in Ekiti.

     

    Tinubu

    No doubt, the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s leader. The governor, who had served under him in Lagos as Commissioner for Works for almost eight years,  is a dependable and loyal party man. Tinubu played a major role in his ascension to power in Osun State.  Although Tinubu is a national figure, the Southwest is his primary base. He is the leader of the progressives in the region. When Ekiti was recaptured, it was insinuated that his sphere of influence had reduced. But, with the victory of Aregbesola, the party has received the tonic to forge ahead into 2015 electoral battle.

     

    Akande

    The elder statesman is a father figure to the progressive bloc in Osun State. In 2003, the former APC Interim National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande, lost the governorship election to former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola. It was painful to lovers of progress and prudence. Now, the second term he could not achieve or what he lost to alleged rigging has now been achieved by one of his political children.

     

    Aregbesola

    His victory can be described as the triumph of the people’s will over the federal might. The stomach infrastructure theory collapsed. Aregbesola fought for three years to regain his stolen mandate. In almost four years, he has demonstrated the brilliance of a patriot, astute administrator and performer. A week to the poll, a Lagos APC chieftain said it would be difficult for to rehabilitate Aregbesola by the APC, if he is defeated or rigged out. “He has been working and there is no evidence that he has amassed wealth. He deserves victory. I know he will win, but we must not sleep on guard,” said the legislator. With his endorsement for continuity, he has emerged as one of the undisputed leaders of Osun politics in post-Bola Ige era and the toast of the people.

     

    Adeleke

    The former governor, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, defected from the APC to the PDP, few months before the poll. He was harassed on the eve of the election by policemen who covered their faces to avoid being identified. The PDP had picked Hon. Adejare Bello from Ede, his base, as Omisore’s running mate. The former Speaker of the House of Assembly had boasted to deliver the area to the PDP. But, it amounted to day dreaming. The success of the APC in Ede has affirmed Adeleke’s stature and popularity at home.

     

    Adeyeye and his team

    Prof. Sola Adeyeye, the vocal senator from Osun Central, was the Chairman of Rauf Aregbesola Campaign Organisation. He and members of his team organised rallies and campaigns for the governor. He was not afraid of molestation by security agents. When the Acting Inspector General of Police Abba visited the state, he complained about the victimisation of the APC members. “I have signed my will”, he said, daring the security agents.

     

    Osun voters

    Osun has the highest number of urban centres and towns in the country. Across the three districts and six zones, Aregbesola is loved by the people. Although they were wooed with cash gifts and food stuffs, they voted for their conscience. They trooped out in large numbers to exercise their voting rights. In particular, they also shunned unruly behaviour. Not only did they vote for the governor, they also defended their votes.

     

    INEC

    The electoral agency also conducted a fairly credible poll. Complaints by stakeholders during the election were responded to by the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Olusegun Agbaje. Polling officers reported for duty in time. There was no shortage of polling officers, ballot boxes and papers. Unlike 2007,there was no aiding and abetting. INEC staff did not collude with security agents to abort the wish of the people.

     

    Losers:  PDP

    The greatest loser is the PDP. The party has been checkmated in its bid to recapture the Southwest. Politically, President Goodluck Jonathan may have an axe to grind with Aregbesola because he could not garner votes from the state at the 2011 presidential election. That was due to the governor’s influence. The PDP was said to have invested a lot in the exercise, in terms of logistics. The outcome of the election has shown that there is a limitation to the power of federal incumbency.

     

    President Jonathan

    When the President visited Osun State for campaign, he boasted that PDP chieftains would return to the state for the inauguration of Senator Iyiola Omisore as governor. Instructively, the President could not point to the achievement of his administration in the Southwest state in the last three and half years. He said he would speak on his achievements after Omisore might have won the poll.

     

    Omisore and Bello

     

    The politician from Ile-Ife is a veteran governorship aspirant. His ambition to rule the state started during the Abacha days. Indeed, it was said that the Alliance for Democracy (AD), which fielded Akande as its flag bearer in 1999 relied on Omisore’s structure to win the poll. In 2002, the former deputy governor showed interest in the governorship. He left for the PDP, contested the senatorial election in detention and won. He was re-elected in 2007. But, in 2011, he was defeated by his kinsman, Senator Babajide Omoworare. The PDP candidate, who emerged as the PDP flag bearer at a rancorous shadow poll, was determined to dislodge Aregbesola. Like his Ekiti State counterpart, he indulged on riding okada to rallies. He was also sighted on the street eating corn and roasted plantain. But, he was rejected by the people. Although he garnered substantial votes from his town, Ile-Ife , they were inadequate to make him governor. Before the poll, Omisore’s running mate, Bello said that he would pull the rug of Adeleke’s feet at home. But, after the close of the poll, he failed to deliver.

     

    Southwest PDP

    The crisis-ridden zonal chapter was motivated by its marginal success in Ekiti to challenge the APC to a duel in its stronghold. Its members holding important positions in the Federal Government threw their weight behind the PDP candidate. Among them were the Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro and  his Police Affairs counterpart, Jelili Adesiyan. The Chairman of the Contact and Mobilisation Committee, Buruji Kashamu, also gave a helping hand. But, the rainbow coalition could not match the APC arsenal.

     

     

     

     

  • Aregbesola decries militarisation of poll

    Aregbesola decries militarisation of poll

    •EU urges governor to seek legal option

    Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has condemned the militarisation of last Saturday’s election.

    He decried the show of “brute force” by security agents deployed in the state by the Federal Government.

    Aregbesola spoke at the Government House in Osogbo, the state capital, while hosting the European Union Election Monitoring Group.

    He said voting is a minute aspect of a democracy and should not be backed by force, so that people can freely choose their leaders.

    Aregbesola condemned the “commando-like manner” hooded security men operated on the streets and the “unwarranted” arrests of All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftains.

    He said: “Our victory did not come because the federal authority designed it so, but because we were favoured by the people as the best party that can serve them better.

    “Or how do you rationalise the presence of strangers (security personnel), people I cannot control, who took over the administration of the security of my state with impunity, which adversely affected life in the state?

    “It is humiliating, worse sort of what a unit of government like ours should suffer. There was a deliberate attempt to muzzle the people’s voice.

    “By now we should know that voting is just a routine aspect of democracy and, even at that, the people must not be denied their freedom to choose their leader freely.

    “We must prevent the Federal Government from the recurring culture of arbitrarily invading the territory of a unit within the federal structure. This is an abuse of power.”

    The European Union Election Monitoring Group advised Aregbesola to address his complaints legally.

    The group’s coordinator, Paul Edwards, said strict adherence to the rule of law was the best way to deepen democracy in Nigeria.

    Edward said: “We are here to congratulate you on your victory in Saturday’s election. Besides, our mission here is also to find out from you about the conduct of the election. We have observed the election across the state and have our reports.

    “In any election, there are bound to be issues. But it is our opinion that whatever the complaint you have, you should choose the legal option to seek remedy.

    “Let us rely on the instrumentality of the law to purse whatever anomaly or violation of rights we have suffered. Let us always use the legal method to stop the impunity used by one unit of government against the other. It is through this option that we can deepen democratic institutions wherever it is practised in the world. If you send your complaints to the EU, we shall take note of it and act accordingly within the framework of the law.”

    Aregbesola hailed the group’s commitment to the development of democracy in Nigeria.

  • Okorocha: APC not planning Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket

    Okorocha: APC not planning Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket

    Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha has said the All Progressives Congress (APC) will not contemplate a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in the 2015 general elections.

    Okorocha addressed reporters yesterday at the Government House in Owerri, the state capital.

    He said the APC recognised the two major religions in the country and would ensure that the two are considered in choosing its presidential candidate and the running mate.

    The governor, who is also the Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, said the party was aware of the importance of carrying the two religions along in its ambition to win the presidential election.

    He said: “APC will not present a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket in 2015. The two major religions of Islam and Christianity will be reflected and not what is being speculated.”

    Okorocha also said the party had not zoned the presidential ticket to any region of the country, adding: “APC does not believe in zoning because it does not guarantee good leadership. The President can come from any part of the country, so long as he has what it takes to lead the country.”

  • PDP, APC supporters clash in Ife

    Supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) clashed yesterday in Ile-Ife, Osun State.

    It was learnt that PDP supporters allegedly attacked APC members, who were celebrating Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s re-election.

    Many people were injured.

    Police spokes person Mrs. Folasade Odoro said she was unaware of the clash.

    The APC urged its supporters to be calm in the face of provocation.

    In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Kunle Oyatomi, the APC said: “Reports reaching our secretariat in Ile-Ife say the PDP has gone on a rampage against APC supporters, who were celebrating Aregbesola’s victory in last Saturday’s election.

    “Besides the physical injuries inflicted on our supporters, the PDP thugs extended their violence to Gbodo, where they attacked and damaged properties belonging to the father of the Executive Secretary of Ife South Local Government, Tajuden Lawal.

    “They also vandalised shops in Itakogun. Fortunately, we are told the police have intervened and the situation has normalised. As much as possible, we must avoid violence.”

  • Kwankwaso: Aregbesola’s re-election is lesson for all

    Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso has described Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s re-election as “a big lesson for Nigerians and a success for democracy, which the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) should learn from.

    Kwankwaso, who spoke with The Nation yesterday in his office, said: “The election in Osun State is a big lesson to all of us. It is a success for democracy, the people of Osun, APC and those on the other side of the political divide.

    “I thank the Almighty God that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has started in the right direction and I hope it will continue to do the right thing, despite the intimidation I believe it is facing.

    “One should commend the PDP’s national leadership for congratulating the governor and people of Osun. I think that is courageous, but I do not believe they mean it. I am taking it on face value.

    “I am not surprised by the position of the party in the state, because the story they took to the Presidential Villa before the election is completely different from what was on the ground and certainly different from the outcome of the election.

    “Somebody in the system, who can read in between the lines, believes that they collected so much and wanted to justify the resources they collected.

    I advise them to see what they collected as part of the missing money well-meaning Nigerians raised the alarm about. These people should be happy that they have gotten their own share and we hope that other state party chapters will do the same during future elections.

    “The people should take as much as they can and do what they think is right on the election day. The PDP is more desperate than ever to maintain the status quo, but Nigerians want change. The ideology of our party, the APC, is to bring everybody together – Christians and Muslims, rich and poor, North and South and all other divides.”