Ile-Ife, the cradle of the Yoruba was the centre of activities last Tuesday when Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola flagged off his re-election campaign, ADESOJI ADENIYI
was there.
•Governor flags off campaign
Tuesday last week was a day to remember in Ile-Ife, Osun State. It was the day the campaign train of the governor of the state, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola took off on a journey round the state to garner support for his second term bid.
Even though everything was set for the mega rally that heralded the beginning of his campaign for the August 9, gubernatorial election, the large turnout of his supporters mainly from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and other well-wishers at the homestead of his main challenger from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Iyiola Omisore left no one in doubt about the immense popularity of the governor.
Many people, particularly the politicians and other residents of the state, have been looking forward to the commencement of political campaigns by candidates of the political parties. After scaling through the first hurdle of becoming the standard bearer of his party, the All Progressives Congress, through his endorsement for second term by various groups in and outside the party and the state, what was left for Aregbesola before flagging off his campaign was a signal from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) lifting the ban on campaigns and which was done two weeks ago. And Ile-Ife, the cradle of the Yoruba was the place for him to flag-off his campaign.
For many people it was political and more important for Areg-besola to test his popularity in a town where the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hails from and where he claims to be his stronghold. But Aregbesola in his campaign address said it was erroneous to think so.
And as some of his aides including Sunday Akere and Ajibola Basiru, told whoever cared to listen, Aregbesola explained that it was tradition with his party to start it’s campaign from Ile-Ife, which they regard as the source of the Yoruba race out of respect for the ancient town, its monarch and peoples.
First, Aregbesola and his campaign train including his wife, Sherifat, and deputy, Otunba Grace Titi Laoye-Tomori and other principal officers of his government paid homage to Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, Olubuse II where he received a royal blessing and permission to flag off the campaign for 2014 governorship poll.
There was sea of heads, mostly APC supporters in and outside Ile-Ife at the Government Technical College, venue of the event, waiting in solidarity to welcome Aregbesola to the ancient town. Many of them, who came in groups, had waited patiently for many hours before the governor and his campaign train eventually arrived around 5.00 pm. The crowd was so huge that the governor’s convoy found it difficult to move into the enclosure where Aregbesola was to climb a podium and address the people. The security, comprising the police, men of the Department of State Security, the Nigeria Security and Defense Corps and the Federal Road Safety Corps, had a hectic time controlling the crowd and vehicular movement. The Fuji maestro, King Wasiu Marshal, and many other musicians, including Tony Tetuila were on hand to sing on the occasion.
Mounting the podium to address the crowd, the elated Aregbesola said his reason for seeking a second term was to consolidate good governance. At intervals, he was churning out a number of folk songs, miming juju and Fuji music to drive home his point to the admiration of his supporters, who responded with great cheers. The governor reeled out a long list of achievements that cut across the state and sectors.
His party, the APC, as expected, was always ready to lend its voice on issues as they affect the governor. Reacting to the flag off, the party said that if there was any doubt in the minds of skeptics and opponents alike that Aregbesola’s popularity is unassailable by any politician in the race for August 9 gubernatorial election, the Tuesday campaign flag off, a show of support by the people of Ife zone was the start of the storm that should clear those doubts.
According to the APC, only a person who has impacted the lives of the people positively can get the kind of reception given to the governor as he kicked-off his campaign in the home of his PDP opponent. The party’s spokesperson Barrister Kunle Oyatomi, said: “The crowd was representative of popular support, the festive atmosphere was indicative of spontaneous joy of a people who were appreciative of what Governor Aregbesola has done for them which had never been done by any other governor since Osun State was created 23 years ago. The storm has just started; it will build into a hurricane as the campaigns progress and when the votes are over by August 9, the PDP will be crushed.”
Two days before the flag off, the Ife Zone of Aregbesola State Campaign Committee appealed to the PDP and its governorship candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore, to embrace peace. At a press conference in Ile-Ife, the chairman, Hon. Folorunso Bamisayemi, said if truly the reason for seeking the mandate to rule is for development there should not be any justification for planning bloodletting and plan for unleashing violence on the people. He said the All Progressives Congress had no history of violence and assured that the party was prepared to show case numerous achievements of the governor in all sectors.
He maintained that the governor had done so much for people of the state and the Ife zone in particular, adding: “In Ife municipal, Aregbesola’s administration constructed 15 roads which are about 30 kilometres long. For Ife South, he constructed 12 roads; nine for Ifetedo and three for Garage Olode. He constructed 14 roads for Ife North which consists of Ipetumodu, Yakoyo, Edun-Abon and others. Also, he built world class schools for the people of this zone. He improved our environment significantly. Through Agba Osun, he provided a social security for the elderly which no government before him ever did. The PDP for its seven and a half years had nothing to show for being in power. The party left public schools in shambles.” He maintained that rather than engage in violence the APC would base its campaign on issues and achievements of Aregbesola which no government has ever matched.
According to Bamisayemi, the information reaching the APC in Ife zone was that the PDP and Omisore were planning to abort the flag off of the APC. He said they had it on good authority that Omisore want to unleash terror on the chieftains of the APC in Ife, starting from Monday night through Tuesday morning. But Omisore through his Campign Director of Media, Prince Diran Odeyemi, said “the series of unfounded allegation against him and the PDP are mere noise from APC that has nothing tangible to base its campaign on. ”Omisore yesterday, Omisore today, Omisore tomorrow, why? Do all these not negate APC’s earlier promise to go and sleep should Omisore become PDP candidate? All these noise and unsubstantiated allegations are signs of a drowning party looking for what to clinch on for survival. This is the time to talk about programs and manifesto and not about Omisore did this, he did that. If there are evidences of plan to cause mayhem anywhere in the state, they should inform the police and other security agencies rather than running to the press,”
However, the flag off went peacefully. Akere and Basir said the exercise did not witness any act of violence because the APC had revealed the PDP and Omisore’s plot to cause mayhem. Describing the event as momentous the party said it has shown that the take off of APC’s governorship campaign will finally sweep the PDP out of Osun State.
With the Ile-Ife flag off rally, Aregbesola has set the tone for what to expect during the campaigns. And to a lot of people, the size of the crowd at the campaign rallies will go a long way to determine the popularity of the candidates.
