Sons and daughters of Iragbiji turned out in large number expectedly to vote for one of their own, Gboyega Oyetola, who is the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in today’s election.
Residents stormed polling units as early as 6:30 am awaiting staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to commence the voting exercise that was slated for 8:00 am.
In most of the polling units visited by our reporter, accreditation and voting commenced as scheduled with the card readers working in nearly perfect condition.
Oyetola arrived at the L. A. School, Popo, Iragbiji at exactly 10:05 am. At 10:10, he did his accreditation. The card reader could not read his fingerprint the first time but succeeded the second time. He proceeded to cast his vote at 10:12.
His wife, Kafayat, did the same immediately after her husband. But the card reader could not read her fingerprint until the third attempt.
Clad in a white native attire with an orange cap to match, Oyetola described the exercise as peaceful and well organized.
He also told reporters that reports from other parts of the state suggested that it has been a peaceful exercise so far. He hailed the INEC for a smooth process and also commended Osun residents for conducting themselves peacefully as they performed their civic duties.
A total of 1,278 voters were registered at his polling unit.
After casting his vote, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ademola Adeleke, has assured his supporters that, if he is not rigged out by the authorities in charge of the process, he is sure of victory.
Adeleke who arrived exactly 8am at his polling unit 009, Ward 2, Abogunde/Sagba registration area, Ede North, was the first to vote at the unit.
The Card Reader Machine had initially difficulties authenticating his fingerprints, but after about five minutes, he succeeded in doing his accreditation.
The PDP flag bearer who voted at about 8.07am told reporters afterwards that so far everything was proceeding normally and that if it continues that way he is sure of victory.
He said attempts were made to frustrate his bid, to destabilise him ahead of the election, but everything failed in the end.
Buoyed by the support he is getting from his constituency in Ede, Senator Adeleke who surprisingly emerged winner of the Osun West senatorial by-election in July 2017 fancies himself as the next governor of Osun State.
Adeleke became actively involved in partisan politics when he contested and won the by-election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), after the death of his elder brother, former Governor Isiaka Adeleke, then a serving senator, in April 2017.
Ademola Adeleke had defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the PDP, when he suspected that the ruling APC in Osun State would deny him its ticket for the contest.
He proved book makers wrong when he won the election which was conducted on July 23, 2017. Everyone had expected the APC to win the election.
The chairman of the APC in Irewole Local Govt area, Osun state, Owo ade Arimiyau, has said that the people of the local government area will reciprocate the “kind gesture” of the party by voting enmass for the party on Saturday.
In an exclusive chat with The Nation, Arimiyau said as far as the people is concerned, it is a “block vote” for the APC.
“This is our time to say thank you to APC for giving us the slot of Deputy Governor”.
He revealed that the people of Ikire have benefitted immensely from the APC government, adding that since the party has honoured Ikire people, it is only natural to reciprocate the gesture.
He dismissed the planned alliance of four parties to challenge APC and described it as “an effort in futility”.
“We are hopeful that God will crown our efforts. The way people have received us gives us absolute confidence of victory,” he said.
He further revealed that even the traditional ruling council of Ikire have resolved to support their son (Alabi) in the election .
The last minute attempt by three governorship candidates to present a common candidate for Saturday’s election has failed.
The candidates involved were Alhaji Moshood Adeoti of Action Democratic Party (ADP), Senator Iyiola Omisore, Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Alhaji Fatai Akinbode, African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Reliable sources disclosed that the the meeting was held at the instance of some Yoruba elders who wanted the three parties to present a common front to dislodge All Progressives Congress (APC) from power in Osun State.
None of the three candidates, according to our source, was ready to step down at the meeting held on Wednesday night through early Thursday morning.
Adeoti ‘s media aide, Mr Kayode Agbaje confirmed that three candidates met but he said it was not about stepping down for each other.
Rather, Agbaje said there coming together was to ensure that their polling agents collaborate at the polling units to guarantee free and fair election and that the results announced reflect the people’s will.
Agbaje said the candidates insist that the process must be credible and if any other party tries to play a smart game that would undermine the process, the candidates would reject it.
He said his principal does not have to merge with any party to win today’s election because he is the candidate to beat.
The paramount ruler of Iwo, Oba AbdulRasheed Adewale Akanbi has cautioned his subjects against causing violence in today’s governorship election in Osun State.
The monarch who spoke to our correspondent in his palace on Friday said: “If you cause violence and you are caught by the security operatives, you will go to jail.”
“That is why I have been telling my people to ensure a violence-free election. Whoever wins should be accepted as our governor. Politics is not a do or die. We have a governorship candidate from Iwo. As a royal father, I cannot take side, all the candidates are my children whoever that emerges is our governor and I am ready to work with him.”
The Oluwo charged the security operatives to be pro-active by quelling any form of violence promptly. He added that they should arrest and prosecute the suspects in court.
He insists that “we don’t want any problem or violence in this election because it will create bad image not only for Iwo but the whole country”.
He recalled that during the 1983 general elections, many people were killed in Iwo, many houses were burnt and some of them have not being repaired till date.
The monarch also advised politicians against the winner takes –all syndrome; instead they should run an all-inclusive government. He said the winner should include the best brain from the opposition side in his government in the interest of the state.
Similarly, the APC Chairman, Osun West Senatorial District, Hon. Amobi Akintola said the party had educated its members to guide against violence. According to him, we told them “go and vote, don’t fight”.
Akintola said the APC was fully prepared for today’s election and he was sure the party would come out victorious at the end of the day.
At some point in the life of a human being, a momentous question must be answered decisively: Should I continue in the direction I face, or should I change course? Burdened with the weight of this question, rational nature kicks in, weighing the pros and cons of each prospective choice vis-a-vis a desired goal, and choosing accordingly.
Rational choice-making entails considering the pleasure and pain that we have experienced in our current station. But we refrain from putting disproportionate weight on momentary pain provided there is a reasonable chance that the pain is truly fleeting, and there is a high probability of it leading to a brighter future commensurate with our desired end. We don’t abandon regular dental checkups simply because of the pain experienced visiting a dentist.
A nation or a state is the sum of the individuals that make it up, and their challenges and hopes are its challenges and hopes. Furthermore, at specific moments, a state or nation must contemplate the question: should we continue in the same direction or change course?
For a nation or a state, this question comes up in two ways. First, elected leaders may, in collaboration with the people, ask and answer the question how to proceed with governance. Their answer serves as their road map for the period of their service. If they reflect well before opting for the course, they are likely to succeed. Of course, it is not always smooth-sailing. But true leaders relentlessly set their eyes on the prize and, more importantly, inspire the people to buy into the plan and have confidence in the goal.
Second. In a democratic republic, leadership is not for life and periodic elections are held to choose new leaders. Even where there is no term-limit for a leader to serve, democracy requires that he or she presents himself or herself for new mandates on a regular basis. And in case of term-limit, when an incumbent retires from the position and the people must choose a new leader, the question is relevant: should we choose continuity with current course or should we change course?
It is this question that the great State of Osun is poised to answer tomorrow. After eight years of Comrade Aregbesola and the APC government, electorates are eagerly pondering whether it is rational for them to vote for continuity or for change. It is a reasonable question that deserves serious contemplation.
Eight years ago, voters put their faith in the programme of action presented by Aregbesola. It was the programme of ACN with its faith in human development as the pillar of progress. Its centerpiece was quality education, infrastructural development, and social welfare. The first four years of Aregbesola saw Osun as the most developed in any state its size and resource endowment. Every indices of development favored the Aregbesola model. But for the downturn in economic fortunes due to the Great Recession of the last five years, Osun would now be in the league of most developed states anywhere.
Therefore, in terms of a mindset that puts people’s welfare first and is determined to make government work for the people, Aregbesola has no parallel. His philosophy of governance is close to that of the sage and to that of his mentor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. Unfortunately, Aregbesola does not have the resources of Lagos in Osun State.
Here then is the question: Does Osun continue with the philosophy of governance that puts people first and makes human development the driver of public policy, or does the state change course? Reasonable people will choose continuity.
With the choice of continuity, then, another question follows: out of the candidates presented to voters in this election, who is best suited to continue this philosophy of governance and improve upon it? We can approach this question by focusing on what might be termed the three Ps: party, person, and process.
Three months ago, on July 27, I made a reference to Chief Awolowo’s observation on the role of the political party in our Constitution. As the sage puts it, the “Registered Political Party is the sole source from which candidates for election and elected members of the Legislature and Executive derive their lifeblood for acceptability, public status and legitimacy.”
I also referenced a pertinent definition of political party provided by ACE Electoral Knowledge Network: “an organized group of people who exercise their legal right to identify with a set of similar political aims and opinions and one that seeks to influence public policy by getting its candidates elected to office.”
These two observations on the definition and significance of political party should guide our approach to discerning the rational choice for the people of Osun in this election. From Aregbesola’s focus on education, infrastructure, and social welfare, and his achievements in these areas, we see a synergy between his focus and the “set of political aims and opinions” that his party, All Progressives Congress (APC) seeks to pursue for the people.
As I observe above, Aregbesola’s performance has been exemplary, whatever metrics we adopt. The social welfare programme that APC inherits from its legacy parties, especially ACN, are in the tradition of progressivism that transformed the Southwest in the first and second republics. Since the people then benefited immensely from that focus, continuity is in the best interest of Osun people.
The other major parties in this contest include the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Though the latter also claims to draw from the fountain of the old West, its limitation is that, in its present iteration, it has not had an opportunity to showcase its fidelity to that source. It hasn’t governed a state or local government.
On its part, PDP lays no claim to a commitment to the people, and, understandably, the experience of Nigerians with the party is not one they want to repeat. PDP’s philosophy of governance is “chopping life”, and its source of inspiration goes back to NNDP via NPN. Recall that a late leader of the party, also from Osun State, once exposed this philosophy in his complaint that the late Chief Bola Ige was not appreciative of PDP’s invitation to him to “come and chop.”
Now to the persons. Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola is the APC candidate. A self-made man, he has demonstrated his loyalty to his party as a member and as the Chief of Staff to Governor Aregbesola. In this position, he has been instrumental to the success achieved by the administration in the last eight years. If continuity of his party’s governing philosophy is favored, there is no better candidate to pursue it with vigor. Most importantly, Oyetola is a veritable proponent of the Omoluabi ethos that Osun state has espoused in the last eight years. Now, more than ever, our people need the entrenchment of this value.
Compare Oyetola with the candidates of the two other major parties and the difference is clear. Shifting allegiances in search of self-interest, as they have demonstrated, is not a mark of Omoluabi. Neither does it show a deep-seated commitment to a desirable philosophy of governance. What motivates them besides their self-interest? Needless to add, being abusive to elders and being implicated in the worst of crimes against humanity, due to personal moral lapse, is a disqualifying factor.
Finally, by process, I mean how a party nominates its candidate. By involving the electorate in a direct primary, APC has demonstrated its commitment to true democracy and that should count for something. The members of the party are treated with respect as stakeholders and counted upon to use their judgment in selecting its candidate. They are therefore strongly motivated in this general election to elect their party’s candidate, unlike members of other parties who were passed over in favor of special delegates to nominate a candidate.
In view of the above, I trust that the good residents of Osun State will go out this Saturday, fully informed about what is at stake in this election, which pits continuity against change and will choose continuity over an uncertain change. They will elect Gboyega Oyetola as their governor.
YIAGA Africa, a Civil Society Organisation (CSO), said the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) ban on phones in voting booths during the Osun governorship election would reduce vote buying and selling.
Mr Ezenwa Nwagwu, a board member of YIAGA Africa in a statement said that the group under its Watching The Vote (WTV) project deployed 561 observers to monitor the pre, during and post election environment of Osun.
Nwagwu said that 500 stationary observers, 32 mobile citizen observers and 30 collation observers would be sent to 250 polling units across the 30 Local Government Areas of Osun to observe the election.
“As noted during the 2018 Ekiti governorship election, the Osun governorship election may be decided by the highest bidder.
“This is based on prevalence of voter inducement that precedes Election Day voting.
“With this in mind, WTV welcomes the reorganisation of polling units by INEC in its bid to protect the secrecy of ballot.
“ Specifically, we welcome the ban on use of phones in the voting cubicles or voting booth, if properly enforced, WTV believes it will reduce the incidence of vote buying and selling at the polling unit.”
Nwagwu urged voters to resist any attempt by politicians to subvert the process through material inducement or cash.
He also urged voters to make informed voting choices based on capacity, character and competence of candidates and not amount of cash or gift items distributed by parties and candidates.
He said that the group also identified some early warnings that needed attention.
He said that the WTV observers reported cases of violent physical or verbal attacks, vandalism, destruction of properties, inflammatory and inciting statements and recruitment of political thugs by a candidate or the supporters.
He said that these incidences could potentially lead to breach of peace if not abated.
He said that the group was concerned with the growing rate of fake news and misinformation in the public space ahead of the election.
Nwagwu said that this was dangerous and could negatively influence political behaviour in this election.
He said the group urged INEC and security agencies to remain alert and counter fake news and misinformation in a timely and expeditious manner.
The official said that sponsors and peddlers of fake news and misinformation should be reprimanded and sanctioned in line with legal stipulations.
He said that the group reiterated its call that security agents on election duty should uphold the principles of non-partisanship, transparency, civil policing and professionalism in the conduct of their affairs.
He urged security agencies deployed for the election to respect the rights of citizens and observers, including the right to freedom of movement on Election Day for duly accredited observers.
He, however, expressed concerned with the influx of top government functionaries from other states into Osun, adding that such officials should be barred from moving around with security agents.
Nwagwu said that on Election Day, WTV observers would report to their assigned polling units at 7:00 am and remain there throughout setup, accreditation and voting, counting and the announcement and posting of the official results.
He said that throughout the day, every citizen observer at sampled polling units will send in eleven coded text messages to the Osun data centre located at Ideal Nest Hotel, Osogbo.
He said that once the text messages are received at YIAGA Africa’s data centre, they would be processed and reviewed to ensure the information is complete, authentic and accurate.
“We urge the electorate to remain calm even in the face of challenges that may arise as every Osun voter has the right to participate irrespective of party affiliation.” he said.
Nwagwu said that in the interests of transparency and accountability, INEC should make polling unit results publicly available in a timely manner.
This, he said, would enhance the confidence of political parties, contestants and the public in the accuracy of the official results.
He encouraged all registered, with their cards to go out on Saturday, Sept. 22 to vote their choice in the Governorship Election
FORGET the brickbats. Put aside the empty sentiments. The jokes. The dull, drab and dumb debates. The gossip and the beer-parlour talk. Dump them all. Let’s get down to brass tacks.
Osun State is lucky. There is an army of candidates – 48 in all – running in Saturday’s governorship election. With the field so crowded, it is easy for the less discerning to lump them all together – the serious, the tricksters and the pranksters.
Of all the candidates, five seem to be the front runners. All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Gboyega Oyetola; Moshood Adeoti Shehu, African Democratic Party (ADP); Ademola Adeleke, People’s Democratic Party (PDP); Iyiola Omisore, Social Democratic Party (SDP), and Fatai Akinmade, African Democratic Congress (ADC). All are eminently qualified to get the trophy.
Adeoti used to chair the APC. He was prominent in the days of the struggle to retrieve Rauf Aregbesola’s stolen mandate from the PDP predators who had seized the state by the throat. After Aregbesola’s legal victory, Adeoti mounted the saddle as chairman. He landed the prestigious Secretary to the State Government (SSG) post.
When it was time to choose an APC candidate to join the race for Aregbesola’s successor, Adeoti threw his hat in the ring. He expected that the prize should be his, naturally. “I have suffered a lot for this party,” he was quoted as saying. The elders rejoined – trust elders and their wisdom – that he was right. “Eight years as SSG after being chairman; what suffering could be bigger than that? No greater sacrifice can a true party man make,” he was told.
Before the APC could decide on the way forward, a divisive and bitter campaign had taken off. Enter “West lokan”(it is the turn of the West). Suddenly, it was no longer in the best interest of the state to have the best; just anybody as long as he is from the West.
The party organised a free and fair primary. Sadly, not many members remembered how Adeoti “suffered” for them. By direct primary, they chose Oyetola. Adeoti and his associates stomped out of the party to berth at ADP.
Adeoti studied Business Administration at the University of Benin (UNIBEN). From 1975 to 1978, he was the manager at Igbehin Adun Sawmill in his Iwo hometown.
Wherever he goes now, his supporters scream “Sheeeehu!” and many mistake him for a famous Islamic scholar who goes by that name, but he is not bearded.
Otunba – sorry; I take that back – Dr Iyiola Omisore is widely seen as a pugnacious fellow who hugs controversy like a long-lost-and-found lover. He is seen as brash and harsh. His associates dismiss that as a wrong impression. He is just audacious, they say, stressing that this is in no way a bad quality.
On account of the N1.7b he was said to have got from the N4.6b collected from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in the days of the PDP bazaar, he is seen as tainted. In fact, it is said, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) would not let him rest until he pays back the cash in full. What they forget is that everybody who was somebody in the PDP – Omisore was indeed a political juggernaut– was a partaker of the largesse.
Those who obviously would like to provoke the usually reticent politician and master of the cut and thrust politics by alluding to the Bola Ige murder must remember that a court had long ago found Omisore not guilty of the crime. They should also remember that Omisore’s kinsmen voted him as senator while he was in prison – a record no Nigerian politician has matched. What greater love can a people show their dearest son!
Now, the former deputy governor is running a familiar race; he wants to be governor – to crown a glorious political career that opponents describe as turbulent and full of desperation. They say he loves corn-on-the-cob so much that he chomps two cobs at a time, one in each hand.
Until the sudden passage of Senator Isiaka Adeleke, little was known about his younger brother Ademola, now a senator – thanks to a sympathetic electorate who felt the family deserved to be compensated with the seat.
Adeleke has a family tree festooned with frontline entertainers, businessmen and politicians. He has since become famous after taking his seat in the Red Chamber. This is not on account of the motions he has moved. Nor is it for his contributions, rendered with remarkable oratory. Nor for his erudition on and off the floor.
But, fair is fair; no lawmaker – living or dead – has Senator Adeleke’s dancing skills.
To those who know him, this is no surprise. He used to be a disc jockey in the United States, they claim. Video clips of his dancing skills have suffused the social media. You cannot but marvel at how he does it; he is obese, yet he swings his waist like a teenager’s, rolls his massive buttocks seductively and swings his hands like a master choreographer’s.
Everywhere he performs, the audience keeps screaming: “Wow! More! More!” He reminds many of the late pop icon, Michael Jackson and the dancer Jeffrey Daniels of the American band, Shalamar.
Adeleke’s fans are already visualising the great tourism potential of a dancing governor. A huge disco hall at the Government House, free shows for residents at festive seasons and street parties for all.
To his opponents, however, such prospect of an unending parties makes no sense. They say the distinguished senator often puts his foot in his mouth. They refer to a video in which he says Aliko Dangote, the shrewd business giant and Femi Otedola, the diesel magnate who has recently been threatening to join the race for Lagos governor, promised to daze Osun residents with cash to pave the way for his (Adeleke’s) governorship.
His opponents, who are obviously busybodies and idle critics, swore that Adeleke never went to school. They have since been put to shame as liars. The senator did not only go to school, he has a WASSCE result showing that he actually sat for the exam and failed in just one subject, the only one he attempted. Is there any crime in that?
Adeleke actually enrolled in a university. Perhaps unable to figure out how it would help his career, he quit. Again, any crime in that?
Goaded on by his people, Adeleke has since set his hand to the plough, but the busybodies, aforementioned, are asking no one in particular: “Is this your best?”
Akinmade, an engineer, is a former SSG. He used to chair the PDP when the party had the state in its pocket and winning elections was as simple as ABC. Besides, he used to be Works Commissioner (1994-1998).
When he failed to get the PDP’s ticket, he defected to the ADC, the one backed by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who once swore that he was done with partisan politics.
Handing Akinmade the mandate, in the view of his critics, amounts to returning Osun to what President Muhammadu Buhari called the “dark days”. Undaunted and confident, Akinmade soldiers on.
Oyetola has a Bachelor’s (B.Sc.) degree in Insurance and a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA), Finance. He worked in Leadway, Crusader and Alliance and General Insurance before founding Silvertrust Insurance Brokers, which he ran until his appointment as Chief of Staff to the governor – a job he did with remarkable passion and dexterity.
He was chairman of Ebony Properties, Executive Vice Chairman, Paragon Group and Director, Pyramid Securities Ltd. His campaign is built around the continuity theme. Continuity of what? His critics ask derisively. He replies eloquently: “Continuity of the fantastic infrastructural development embarked on by the Aregbesola administration – those beautiful schools, roads and bridges – the school pupils’ feeding programme, the big investment in security that has made bank robbery a suicidal venture, the health projects, including the ‘O Ambulance’ and many more.”
Oyetola is that steady hand that Osun needs now; not some revisionists threatening to bring the roof down on everyone. When brain counts and brawn is of no use; when experience counts and apprenticeship is out of the way and when wisdom counts as against tomfoolery, Oyetola is the man. My money is on him.
Dariye and the limits of confidence
FORMER Plateau State Governor Joshua Dariye does not seem to have faced the reality of his doing time in prison. He has obtained the expression of interest and nomination forms to contest the next senatorial election.
He is serving a 14-year jail term for fraud. It is not that his party, APC, is short of aspirants; there are two others. But Mr Chindo Dafat, the publicity secretary, believes that with his popularity – indeed – Dariye will carry the day.
Joshua Dariye
It is true that no law stops Dariye from obtaining the nomination and expression of interest forms, but whatever happened to our values? He has appealed his conviction and we are praying for him, Dafat said.
But why put the cart before the horse? Why not wait for the court’s verdict before running?
What drives Dariye’s ambition? The public interest he so blatantly betrayed? Sheer selfishness? Conceit? Mere fancy? I really don’t know.
Dariye should reflect more and be sober. The race can do without him.
Ahead of the Osun governorship election slated for this Saturday, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Lagos State, Hon. Bayo Osinowo has called on the good people of Osun State to vote for the party’s gubernatorial candidate, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola.
Osinowo, a frontline senatorial hopeful for Lagos East Senatorial District, made this known during the grand finale of the party’s governorship campaign held yesterday in Osogbo .
Speaking to journalists at the rally, the aspirant disclosed that Oyetola remains the best candidate to steer the ship of the state successfully.
He added that none of those aspiring to become the numero uno of the state can match his wealth of experience.
“Electioneering period is all about twiddling the heart of the populace, but in this case, it is evident the electorate can attest to the positive change brought about by the actors of the progressives in the last seven years.
“Indeed, in this critical moment of wooing by political stakeholders ,I implore the people to remain committed and stand with a man who understands the inner workings of a practicable and functional government in the desire to bring progress.
“With the extra edge he possesess, having served meritoriously in the capacity of Chief of Staff for seven years, plus, there is no gainsaying that the wealth of experience embedded in him will take Osun to greater heights,”
The senatorial aspirant also commended the Governor of the State, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola for his performance.
“With the arduous challenges being passed through in the developmental trajectory of the state in the past years, we rejoice with the good people of the Land of Omoluabi for having at their disposal, a capable governor who has consistently demonstrated his brilliance in the eye of the storm,”
It is a matter of days before the electorate in Osun goes to the polls to elect a successor to Rauf Aregbesola, the outgoing state governor. Nature, they say, abhors vacuum. As Aregbesola’s administration is gradually but furiously winding down, it is incumbent on the people to assess where they are coming from, with a view to picturing into what the future holds in stock.
Flipping back to the last eight years with the benefit of hindsight, Aregbesola had met a state at its developmental nadir. The governor met a rudderless state, where every facet of government was comatose. Worse hit were social infrastructure, education, health and commerce. The preceding government, overseen by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), was profligate with the state resources owing to its misplaced priorities and astounding banality. Then enter Aregbesola who worked assiduously to change the state’s narrative. With a landscape littered with infrastructural edifices, ranging from landmark road networks to social amenities, the economy and commercial activities of the state jumpstarted from their dying ashes. This story of success may be a harrowing one, but the fact remains that Aregbesola has done what ought to be done to rescue an ailing state.
With few days to Aregbesola’s handing over the flag to his successor therefore, where is the state headed in a way as to avoid a reversal of the gains of the last eight years and who does the cap fit? Well, a peep into the profile of some of the contenders to the throne will suffice.
First is AdegboyegaIsiakaOyetola, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Born on September 29, 1954, Oyetola holds a Bachelor’s degree (B.Sc.) in Insurance and Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) in Finance. He has served as Area Manager at Leadway Assurance Company Limited; Underwriting Manager at Crusader Insurance and Technical Controller at Alliance and General Insurance.
In 1991, Oyetola founded Silvertrust Insurance Brokers Limited, a firm he has successfully managed until he was appointed as Chief of Staff in 2011. He was also chairman, Ebony Properties Limited; executive vice-chairman, Paragon Group of Companies; and Director, Pyramid Securities Limited.
Oyetola served as Aregbesola’s Chief of Staff until his election as APC governorship candidate. A certified insurance broker by training, the quiet, modest and witty APC flag-bearer is said to be among the founders of the now-rested Alliance for Democracy (AD) in 1998 and has since then remained a notable figure in Osun’s political scene so much that when the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, birthed, he was one of the party’s notable chieftains.
He is a loyal, pronounced technocrat, result-oriented progressive and philanthropist par excellence whose capacity for generosity remains endless. As a matter of fact, no fewer than 400 students have benefitted from his scholarship grants in the last 25 years. He is married with children who are doing fantastically well in their chosen fields of endeavour.
As fate would have it, his deputy, Benedict Olugboyega Alabi, also holds a Master’s degree in Economics which makes the team a perfect combination.
Next is Ademola Adeleke of the PDP. Reports have it that he is a secondary school dropout, whose candidacy has been dogged by controversies. As at the time of writing this, many court cases, bordering, principally, on certificate forgery, are hanging on his neck, all of which are making the coast unclear for his candidature.
With the benefit of hindsight, Adeleke is an accidental politician who was shot into limelight following the sudden death of Isiaka, his elder brother. The concern in some quarters is how the son of a former senator missed the golden opportunity of acquiring the best education that money could provide. Unfortunately, the PDP standard-bearer seemed to have learned nothing from the rise and fall of Salisu Buhari, Nigeria’s former Speaker of the House of Representatives. As he now parades “badly-damaged” credentials, the candidate is seen more as a spoilt brat who is being pushed by his elder brother’s humongous wealth. In any case, it is yet to be seen if he will survive the allegations against him in court. In my considered opinion, a vote for the Ede, State of Osun-born candidate, popularly referred to as Ajobiewe, will be a vote for emptiness and untoward setback as the 58 year-old candidate has shown himself as having nothing to offer.
MoshoodAdeoti is the governorship candidate of the Action Democratic Party (ADP). Adeoti is the immediate past Secretary to the Government of Osun State (SSG). Born on February 27, 1953, Adeoti defected from the ruling party and resigned his appointment as SSG to protest the choice of Oyetola as the candidate of the party in an election that was adjudged free, fair and credible.
A Bachelor’s degree (B.Sc) holder in Business Administration, the ADP candidate was at various times the councillor, secretary and chairman of Iwo Local Government before becoming the chairman of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) which eventually metamorphosed into APC. Aside from his appointment as SSG, the only known place the Iwo-born politician seemed to have had a ‘cognate’ experience was in the sawmilling industry where he served as manager.
Last but not the least is IyiolaOmisore, the veteran governorship candidate has at one time or another served the state as deputy governor and senator representing Osun East Senatorial District. However, despite Omisore’s claim to sound academic acquisition, he is perceived more as a man of slothful pastimes and unstable whims whose schemes cannot do the state any good. It is believed that his desperation may not be for the genuine interest of the masses after all. As such, his victory at the polls may translate into converting our collective patrimony into personal use. Remember: the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate still owes Nigeria a huge sum of money, part of which he has been struggling to refund through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
