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Tag: Folarin

  • Folarin to revive Ikere dam

    Folarin to revive Ikere dam

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Oyo State, Teslim Folarin, has said he will resuscitate the abandoned Ikere dam in Iseyin.

    He promised to collaborate with the Federal Government to ensure that the Oke Ogun region was given a university of agriculture, adding that the region was known for agricultural development.

    Folarin said the party’s campaign rally had been peaceful because some people have left the party.

    According to him, the Ikare dam was one of the Federal Government projects which have been abandoned as a result of the lackadaisical attitude of successive administration.

    “Since Iseyin is the centre of the Oyo Central Senatorial district, it is reasonable to start our campaign here. The first thing we are going to do is to resuscitate the Ikare dam for domestic consumption and irrigation.

  • Ajimobi, Akala, Ladoja, Folarin square up for Oyo race

    Ajimobi, Akala, Ladoja, Folarin square up for Oyo race

    BISI OLADELE  examines the struggle for the Agodi Government House, Ibadan and the chances of gladiators in the governorship race.

    Preparations for the  governorship election in Oyo State started two years ago, barely 18 months into the current tenure. It was propelled by the routing of two former governors – Rashidi Ladoja and Adebayo Alao-Akala – by Governor Abiola Ajimobi in the keenly contested election in 2011. It compelled the key figures and their supporters to return to the drawing board, to lay the foundation for their success in this year’s contest. But, it has not been rosy for the three of contestants, as some of their followers have defected to other parties, seeking where their bread would be  buttered.  Some even left for Labour Party (LP), where they are regrouping to give the three leading figures a fight in the coming election.

    Yet, the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Accord Party remain the leading parties, with the three figures listed above calling the shots.

    Political activities however reached a highpoint recently, when the three major parties picked their governorship candidates.

    APC

    Even for the ruling APC, it was a keenly contested primary. Some courageous politicians  picked the governorship forms to join Ajimobi in the battle for the party’s ticket. They are a son of the late former governor Lam Adesina, Dr Ayo Adesina and Mr. Adebayo Shittu, a lawyer.

    While Adesina is a United Kingdom-based professional, Shittu is based in Ibadan. Adesina is unknown in Oyo State politics, unlike his late father. He is also not known to have built any strong political structure that could have aided his emergence at the governorship primary.

    Shittu has been a politician since the Second Republic. He was a member of the old Oyo State House of Assembly, representing Saki, his home town. He was also a commissioner under Ladoja between 2003 and 2007.

    He contested the governorship election under the platform of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in 2011. But, he lost to Ajimobi. His party, the CPC, is one of the three major opposition parties that metamorphosed into the APC.

    The odds that worked against Shittu’s emergence as the APC candidate were two-fold.  One, he hails from Oke-Ogun and his political structure was not strong enough to secure the governorship ticket. Most of the political parties were bent on fielding an Ibadan indigene for the obvious population advantage of the city.

    Ajimobi was able to grab the ticket because the inbency factor worked in his favour. Besides, he is an exprienced politician. He served as a Senator on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) between 2003 and 2007. He was also the governorship candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) in 2007.

    Accord

    There was no contest for the governorship ticket in the Accord Party because only the leader of the party, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, is the sole governorship candidate. No other member of the party indicated interest in the ticket.

    PDP

    It was the opposition PDP that witnessed the hottest contest for the governorship ticket. About 11 aspirants t6ook part in the primary. They are: Adebayo Alao-Akala, Hazeem Gbolarumi, Isaac Babalola, Taoheed Adedoja, Soji Adejumo, Ayo Adeseun and Femi Babalola. Others are Kehinde Olaosebikan, Teslim Folarin, Oluseyi Makinde and Azeez Adeduntan.

    A former Minister of Power, Elder Wole Oyelese, withdrew from the race at a point, to pave the way for him in the Oyo Central Senatorial ticket.

    However, the major contenders were just three: Alao-Akala, Folarin and Makinde.

    Alao-Akala

    The immediate former governor of the state, Alao-Akala still commands huge following within the party across the state. Except in Oyo zone where his fortune has plummeted since 2011, the Ogbomoso-born politician still sustains good following in his town, Oke-Ogun and a sizeable portion in Ibadan. He also possesses the financial capacity to prosecute the governorship race with candidates of other parties.

    But, in spite of the above credentials, he did not get the ticket. At least two odds against him. One, he is not an Ibadan indigene. This factor is strong for winning the governorship election this time around. It was known well in adavance that two Ibadan men, Ajimobi and Ladoja, were likely to fly the flags of their parties. The PDP chose to field an Ibadan indigence in order to benefit from the population advantage. For instance, the number of voters from Ibadan South West and Ibadan North local governments alone is higher that those of the five local governments in Ogbomoso.  Two, having lost the election once, largely due to credibility factor, the party decided to look elsewhere for a more credible candidate to give Ajimobi and Ladoja a good fight.

    Alao-Akala defected to the Labour Party following his failure secure the PDP ticket. He is sure to pick up the LP governorship ticket, to realise his ambition of taking another shot at the governorship this time around.

    Folarin

     The former Senate Leader eventually triumphed in the primary and emerged the standard bearer of the party in the state. He is one aspirant believed to be favoured by the Presidency. He controls the party’s state executive and is widely connected in Abuja.

    Though a two-time senator, Folarin’s popularity is believed not to be strong enough to beat Ladoja and Ajimobi  in the governorship race.

    Oluseyi Makinde

    A younger genaration of politician, Makinde began the race to Agodi Government House as early as 2012. He had a formidable structure in the state, particularly in Ibadan, his place of birth.

    But, in spite of his youthfulness and his structure, the party delegates overlooked him and handed over the ticket to Folarin.

  • How Folarin emerged Oyo PDP flag bearer

    How Folarin emerged Oyo PDP flag bearer

    The outcome of the governorship primary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo State jolted some party juggernauts and residents of the state. Many concerned stakeholders had entertained fears that the party may not be unable to wriggle out of the logjam arising from the battle for its governorship ticket for the forthcoming general elections.

    But, it was not to be. The event ended with the emergence of former Senate Leader Teslim Folarin as the standard-bearer of the PDP for the governorship contest at the end of proceedings at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium, Ibadan, the state capital. Observers were not surprised at his emergence, having always seen the light pointing towards his direction since 2012.

    The journey to last Monday’s success actually began in 2010, when he was roped into the circumstances surrounding the death of the then kingpin of the Oyo State chapter of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Alh. Lateef Salako (aka Elewe omo).

    The unionist was stabbed to death in a location within Ona-Ara Local Government where Folarin hails from. He was arrested and arraigned for allegedly having a hand in the gruesome killing of the late commercial driver.

    Folarin was also detained on the charges, though he was the Senate Leader at the time. But, many keen followers of Oyo politics believed that the Senator was being persecuted for his ambition to succeed the then Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala in the 2011 election. Owing to his detention, he was unable to contest the election; a development that was an accomplished mission for Alao-Akala.

    But, Folarin came into the limelight within the PDP when he moved the motion earlier in 2010, urging the Senate to adopt the doctrine of necessity to allow the then Vice President Goodluck Jonathan to be sworn in as Acting President,  following ill-health of his boss, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. His motion was adopted, leading to the swearing in of Jonathan as President.

    For that singular act, Folarin sowed a seed, which he has been reaping within the corridors of power at the Presidency. His first harvest came early in 2011, when the Senate rose in his support and prevailed on the Presidency to secure his release. It worked like magic.

    His 2010 heroic motion had paved the way for him to realise his ambition of picking the party’s ticket in 2011, but for the murder charge.

    Aside enjoying the sympathy of Senate President David Mark and other active participants in that historic event at the National Assembly, Folarin also has a robust relationship with some leaders of the party at the national level. All these worked together for the success of the former Senate Leader last Monday.

    Thus, it was easy for him to hijack the leadership of the party in the state in 2012, after Alao-Akala left office.

    For any aspirant to emerge as the party’s governorship flag bearer in the state, he must have control of the party executive at the state and local government levels. In this regard, Folarin started warming his way into the hearts of the executives at the state and local government levels since Alao-Akala ‘stepped aside’ in 2012. So, aspirants that started jostling to pick the ticket in the last one year were only pursuing a shadow as far as the party structure is concerned.

    Only statutory delegates voted in the primary. These are members of the executive of the party in local and state levels, as well as members of the state House of Assembly, as well as those of the National Assembly.

    Now that Folarin has picked the ticket, however, some of his opponents are not willing to let go easily. One of them is Oluseyi Makinde who has vowed to challenge his candidacy in court, should he be presented as the party’s flag bearer in the next year election.

    Makinde’s group obtained a court ruling three days before the governorship primary, validating the delegates’ list used on the November 24 ward congress for last Monday’s primary. He described the primary, which produced Folarin as a nullity in the face of the law. Will Folarin scale through this and any other challenges that may arise?

    Again, analysts are quick to ask if the new PDP candidate is popular enough to defeat the incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi and his predecessor Rashidi Ladoja of All Progressives Congress (APC) and Accord Party respectively.

  • Oyo ACN, group, others blast Folarin for criticising Ajimobi

    Oyo ACN, group, others blast Folarin for criticising Ajimobi

    •‘You represent our ugly past’

     

    Former Senate Leader Teslim Folarin yesterday incurred the wrath of the Oyo State Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), his Ibadan compatriots and others for criticising the Abiola Ajimobi administration.

    Folarin was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Senate Leader from 2003 till last year.

    He was quoted as saying the Ajimobi administration lacked a human face for pulling down some structures that were causing flooding in Ibadan, the state capital, and sacking workers with bad records.

    The Oyo State ACN described the former lawmaker as a good example of what a public official should not be.

    The party said its administration in the state was trying to erase the sad memories the former PDP administration left behind, adding that Folarin was reminding the people of that sad era.

    In a statement in Ibadan by its Publicity Secretary, Dauda Kolawole, ACN noted that the likes of Folarin and the politics of compromise that his party, the PDP, foisted on Oyo State for eight years, could not be continued by any rational administration that wishes to transform the state.

    The statement reads: “There is no way Folarin would not see anything wrong in the ongoing reform in the state civil service and the aesthetics that the state is beginning to have. Until he parted ways with former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala, they were both co-travellers in the rotten boat of Oyo State, in consonance with the late self-styled strongman of Ibadan politics, Chief Lamidi Adedibu. Literally and metaphorically, they dirtied our state; they can never be happy with anyone who is fumigating their smelly past.”

    On the sack of workers, ACN said: “We demand that Senator Folarin show the world his academic credentials. Only …those who profit from a system of forgery and those who live a life of misdemeanour would advocate that persons who defrauded the system should be kept a minute longer in the service. We are ashamed that a former Senator could be a campaigner for the retention of the horrible system of the past.”

    An Ibadan-based socio-political group, the Oyo Patriots League (OPL), faulted Folarin’s criticisms of the Ajimobi administration.

    It described the comment as a campaign of calumny against the government.

    In a statement by Adewale Ajani and Mutiu Oyekola, Coordinator and Organising Secretary, the group noted that the former lawmaker exposed himself as an opponent of a new Oyo State, which Ajimobi is leading.

    The statement reads: “It is most irresponsible for a person who was expected to be remorseful for not only failing the electorate in his fruitless eight years in the Senate but also playing inglorious roles in the ego-driven political turmoil which the entire state was subjected to by his party in the build-up to the 2011 general elections.”

    The Chief Whip of Oyo State House of Assembly, Hammed Abiodun Adigun, described Folarin’s comments as unfounded and reckless.

    The lawmaker said they showed that the former Senate Leader was not happy with giant strides of the ACN-led administration in the state.

    Through his Media Assistant, Sikiru Akinola, the lawmaker said: “Why would a man who cannot point to a tangible project as achievement, when he was at the National Assembly, come out openly to criticise a performing government?

    “He occupied the same position Governor Ajimobi occupied and transformed the lives of his constituents. At least, if the people were not important to him, what did he do for Ibadan where he is a high chief?”