[quote[b]]Must Read: "Response to Mr. Eyieyie on Aregbesola" - By Prof. Yemi Osinbajo[/b]

I was greatly saddened to read the material written by Mr. Eyieyien urging "The Remnants” to vote out the current Governor of Osun State Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and vote in Chief Iyiola Omisore. I am also still somewhat puzzled as to how what appeared to be an opposition to a bond issue and other sundry allegations degenerated to the running down of the APC as an Islamic party, a propaganda tool notoriously deployed by the PDP through its various organs.

Are we as Christians now being urged to support the PDP or what exactly is the message? Reason, is one of the most important contributions of the Gospel to development. From it emerge the practical concepts of fairness and justice for all, especially our enemies. Which is why lynching, even of an intellectual kind is unacceptable.

I am not an unbiased intervenor, I had the good fortune of serving in an AD/ACN government in Lagos State. The ACN is a major partner in the APC. I will come back to the PDP APC issue presently.

Also, I have known Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Governor of the State of Osun, since 1999. We served on the policy committees of the then newly elected AD governor of Lagos State. He served in the infrastructure sub-committee and I, in the Justice sub-committee. I also served with him for 8 years in the government of Lagos State. He as Commissioner for Works and I as Attorney General. I developed a close personal relationship with him. His early ideological belief was shaped byMarxist-Socialist thinking, which probably influences his left- of- centre world view in governance. His first son Kabir went to university in Cuba on a scholarship. In 2005 when he graduated, only Rauf and I attended his graduation . He is a devout Muslim but liberal in his approach to other faiths. This is not unusual amongst the Yorubas largely because most families have both Muslim and Christian members and have always interacted without rancour. Of his six siblings only one other is a Muslim. All the others are Christians. His sister who is of the RCCG, is widowed ( her husband died a Christian) her two sons have lived with Rauf for years, he insists that they must practice their father's faith faithfully. They both attend the RCCG.
Read the rest after the cut....


He and I shared and still share a burden to provide honest, transparent, people-centered governance. He is a scrupulously honest person, as Commissioner for Works in Lagos State he left office without a home and no financial comforts. I know, because aside from my personal and official interaction with him, I coordinated his legal team for the reclamation of his mandate for over three years. I know first hand, his difficulties with sustaining his family, and a small staff for that period. Not surprisingly no one can accuse him in Osun State of corruption. He is just not wired that way.

Indeed, in keeping with that commitment to serve the people with complete fidelity, his major projects have been solely directed at alleviating the suffering and deprivation of his people. The hiring of, now 40,000 unemployed graduates , the provision of free balanced meals for all primary school children, provision of free uniforms, the provision of tablet computers for senior secondary school students containing all their textbooks, past jamb questions etc., monthly stipends to the elderly - all of these in a State that is the third poorest in Federalallocations and currently gets N2.6 billion monthly, a 40 percent reduction from 2013, courtesy of the Federal government. Mr. Eyieyien perhaps was not aware that even the 10 billion sukuk bond was purely for the building of 24 model state-of the art schools, most of which are now completed. The Wole Soyinka led Osun education summit recommended the replacement of the completely broken school infrastructure in Osun State with schools capable of accommodating 1000 students with modern labs, classrooms, power and sports facilities. The idea was to use economies of scale to benefit the largest number of students.

When Mr. Eyieyien describes him as "Sheikh" it is clearly to give the impression that he is an Islamic fundamentalist. The facts on the man completely belie this. First, as Commissioner for Works in Lagos State,he built the chapel at the State House Marina. Pastor Adeboye at the opening commended him and remarked that he would be a pastor soon! Within a year of coming into government, he commissioned in Ilesa the Open Heavens Christian Evangelical Arena , a purpose-built facility for evangelism which according to him was to celebrate the icons of the Christian faith who are from Osun namely- the Late Apostle Babalola , the Late Apostle Obadare, Pastor E.A. Adeboye, Pastor W.F Kumuyi and Pastor Mathew Ashimolowo . Today, his government supports the establishment of five Christian universities in Osun, including The Redeemers University at Ede, the Joseph Babalola University, Dominion University , and Bowen University.

How about the composition of government in Osun State? You will notice that his critics are never able to say that Christians are marginalised in government, why ? Because only Muslims can make that allegation! In the Cabinet of Osun State there are 10 more Christians than Muslims. In addition, the largest Ministries are headed by Christians- Ministries of Finance, Justice, Education, Health, Environment , Agriculture, Physical Planning and Youth and Sports . The Legislature (House of Assembly), which came into office after he won back his mandate in court in November 2010, has a majority of Christian members – 18 Christians and 8 Muslims. Everyone knows that at that level if the Governor does not support your nomination by the party your ambitions are dead in the water. The State Judiciary is headed by a Christian who he appointed although he had preferred and proposed a judge from Lagos Justice Olubunmi Oyewole also a non-Muslim. Of over 30 new Permanent Secretaries appointed by him 22 are Christians. If the majority of your cabinet, ( including your Attorney-General), your Legislature, Judiciary and top echelon of your civil service are Christians how can we in truth say that such a person has an Islamisation agenda? Surely the least a "Sheikh" with an Islamisation agenda should do to achieve his objective is to populate the structure that can achieve that objective with Muslims! It is also entirely false that he patronizes or uses "TAAWUN" guards for his security. It is common knowledge that he hardly even uses any security at all, except for a couple of SSS men, his monthly LIFE WALKS , where he walks alongside his people for kilometres without any significant security cordon was commended recently by a former Governor in the South East. It is incredible what prejudice can do to us. Everyone in Osun knows that the State was nicknamed “State of the Living Spring” in reference to the Osun River after which the State is named. Renaming the State “the OmoluabiState ” – meaning “the State of children born of God” or “the State of men and women of virtue” certainly gives greater glory to God.

To suggest that benefiting from a Sukuk bond to better the lives of his people of all faiths, is enough to justify the grave allegation of an Islamisation agenda, is with all due respect , calling a dog a bad name simply to hang it. I agree that it may have served the politics of religion better not to take the bond, but it is a fairer judgment of his motives, knowing him, that this was borne out of his desire to serve his people well. The 24 mega schools with state-of -the art facilities is a quantum leap in education for the majority of children of the poor who before now schooled in what the Soyinka committee saw as scandalous. The alternative was not to build the schools. When a man who is doing right by the poor and deprived people he governs, is being condemned by those of us who are called to serve the poor, the sick, , the naked, and the hungry then it is fair to ask what the values in governance we really intend to promote are? In any event the alternative is Chief Iyiola Omisore whose antecedents we ought, to put it delicately, be cautious to associate with.

A problem with uncritically accepting as useful advice this viciously anti-APC propaganda, is that it throws the baby out with the bath water. So we are now expected to reject the landmark achievements in Lagos, in Ogun ( the huge infrastructural developments), Oyo ( which for the first time most admit is making real progress) , Edo, and Ekiti ( where almost everyone agrees the governor did a good job but Fayose understood stomach infrastructure better!) Or now Kano or Rivers ( where a REAL rail service is about to begin;Lagos is also about to complete a rail service amongst other exemplary achievements )!

It is also false that the APC's new executive reserved its top positions for Muslims! The Chairman of the party Chief John Odigie-Oyegun is a Christian, the Deputy National Chairman (South) Engr. Segun Oni is a Christian, so are the National Organizing Secretary Senator Osita Izunaso, Deputy National Secretary Hon. Orji Ugofa and Chief Pius Akinyelure , theVice Chairman of the South West. For what it is worth, there are 22 Muslims and 21 Christians in the APC National Executive Committee.

Regarding the rather thinly veiled 'support the PDP/ JONATHAN' message, it is incredible that we are invited to ignore the cynical manner that our President Goodluck Jonathan uses Christianity and the church to further his political ambitions. Why are we being urged to support a PDP/Jonathan bid again? The platform has largely on account of its tragic failure to perform, decided to exploit Nigeria's religious fault lines in the most cynical manner to win support, in the process he continues to divide Nigeria in by the far most extreme manner in our history.
I have worked with many brethren since 2002 on issues around Islamization in Nigeria, in particular with Revd. Ladi Thompson of the Macedonian Initiative and the Omoluabi network. It is clear that Al Qaeda, ISIS , and more recently Boko Haram and their splinters are committed to an Islamization agenda. Their symphathisers certainly cut across all boundaries. The Late General Azazi, then NSA, pointedly accused the PDP of being behind the escalation of Boko Haram, I have that statement on DVD. The President, also openlylamented the infiltration of his cabinet by the Boko Haram. Recently a Nigerian pastor in a widely circulated CD, speaking on the Jihadist agenda accused General Babangida of funding the Islamization agenda from his days as President. Today President Jonathan's most influential Northern supporter is General Babangida. His narrative unfortunately gives no credit to Gen Buhari, and his deputy Gen Idiagbon (also a muslim) who refused to join the OIC despite pressures. Or that Gen Buhari remains the one head of State who was able to defeat an extremist insurgency, the Maitatsine.

How can we fail to see that the incredible corruption, incompetence, poverty of 2/3 of our people after almost seven years of the presentgovernment is unsupportable? How is it that Diezani's use of 10billion Naira to run her private jet ( the same amount of money for the building of 24 mega schools in Osun!) and the complete silence of the President on this travesty does not lead to calling for him to be voted out in 2015? So the allegation of the missing or unaccounted for 20.8 billion USD with 110 million desperately poor, should be dismissed as pure propaganda? So it doesn't make a difference to us that under the PDP Nigeria has fallen behind in every human development indicator? 55,000 women dying yearly of maternal related ailments, only recently Stanford's Professor Larry Diamond compared the yearly deaths of over 300,000 children yearly in Nigeria to the killing of 800, 000 mainly Tutsis in Rwanda. The latter was described as genocide, what is the description to give to mass deaths of infants caused by grand corruption?

We discredit our treasured platforms such as this when we mask our political preferences with a religious veil. The vast majority of our people need to be delivered from terrible want and deprivation, what is required now are capable, honest men and women of all faiths, who know that this country may not long survive the daily punishment of its own people.

Prof. Yemi Osinbajo SAN[/quote]

http://www.bayoadeyinka.com/bayoadeyinka/index.php/entry/must-read-response-to-mr-eyieyie-on-aregbesola-by-prof-yemi-osinbajo

Food for thought....


If only we can turn back the hand of time....I will always regret that decision I made in voting Jonathan based on sentiment and not on any known antecedent...

I wonder what the current Christian political bigots will do when a muslim inevitably becomes president and a large number of muslim bigots emerge to insist publicly that no Christian must be allowed to win any national election just because of his faith.

How do we argue we did not lay the precedent? I never heard strident call by so many muslims when their own was in power the way many misguided Christians do now and calls to question the mythical Christian enlightenment and informed world view. It seems we are as close-minded as the average boko haram minion.

To worsen the matter we are propping up an obviously intellectually challenged man who is in no way a model christian any sane person wants his child to emulate.

This is apt. So on point!

Professor Yemi, may God bless yhu and bless yhur hand also for writing this apt. As for PDP/Jonathan, continue dividing this country on religious line. God is watching.
I simply regretted taking part in 2011 election

I wonder how President Jonathan or the PDP will seek or even get the Muslim vote in the next election after demonizing this faith, its adherents and politicians of the faith.

Why will any Muslim vote PDP or Jonathan after they labeled the APC as an "Islamic" party in a derogatory and bigoted manner?

Jonathan has no respect for people who are at least 50 percent of the electorate and yet expects them to vote against the very party he demonized as serving their interests.

Nigerians are gullible indeed.

Just as stated by the poster above, Ovamboland, what will be the reaction of those Christians when a Muslim eventually becomes the Nigerian president again and all Muslims engage in this type of campaign of religion demonization and bigotry?

This is the right time to cry for the soul of Nigeria for it has been seized by the selfish cabals who use religion to devide us the naive and gullible citizens. I weep for my country.

oyo state govnor is working? u must be joking

A much needed article that serves as a warning over the 'road to perdition' Nigeria has embarked on under the ultra-divisive current government led by GEJ. As someone commented above, it is obvious the North and Islam is demonised wrongly in Nigeria because the toxic intolerance and prejudice Christians are showing today ,and since GEJ was sworn in, actually marks out Southern Christians as more vociferously discriminatory, more intolerant and more prejudiced than others.

We did not see this madness, where every single issue is turned into religious discrimination against others, under Yar Adua who was a Moslem!!! As stated earlier, it is inevitable a Moslem will be President in future. What then for the Southern Christian bigots who cannot see beyond GEJ and have used his Presidency to go public with their prejudiced hatred of the North?

PDP and Jonathan are the REAL bigots. They know that they have failed and lost people's goodwill, they shamelessly and unfortunately employed religions tool to save their faces. As a human, I have never subscribed to bigotry whether ethnic or religious. Most people accusing Ogbeni Rauf of bigotry are either non-Swsterners or pro-Omisore that has shown time and time again that he has nothing to offer. Today is a day of reckoning for the APC/PDP. Today Osun will decide who to handover her mandate. While Ogbeni seriously mobilised the corners of osun to Renew his mandate, Omi on the otherhand employed fan boys accross the Niger(and outside osun) to be causing nuisance on the internet for his sake. People that has no electoral values as long as this election is concerned.

Gbawe: A much needed article that serves as a warning over the 'road to perdition' Nigeria has embarked on under the ultra-divisive current government led by GEJ. As someone commented above, it is obvious the North and Islam is demonised wrongly in Nigeria because the toxic intolerance and prejudice Christians are showing today ,and since GEJ was sworn in, actually marks out Southern Christians as more vociferously discriminatory, more intolerant and more prejudiced than others.

We did not see this madness, where every single issue is turned into religious discrimination against others, under Yar Adua who was a Moslem!!! As stated earlier, it is inevitable a Moslem will be President in future. What then for the Southern Christian bigots who cannot see beyond GEJ and have used his Presidency to go public with their prejudiced hatred of the North?

Gbawe....

I agreed with you..but you should have in mind that not all southern Christians really are involved in this shameful act of religion bigotry....the major culprits are from certain zones in the south.

The SW is just too intertwined religiously than to bring religion to the fore.

Mynd44 Front page oo

To whom do we cry to? When for a further example, the national leadership of CAN is the PDP religious wing.

Religious affiliation and discrimination has become a tool in the hands of PDP and Jonathan to feed its numerous dolts who unfortunately do not know better.

And more unfortunate, the so-called Christian leaders who in their individual capacity should speak-up against this evil prevailing across the land have silently chosen to throw their mouths away.

Excellent article.

ilugunboy:


Gbawe....

I agreed with you..but you should have in mind that not all southern Christians really are involved in this shameful act of religion bigotry....the major culprits are from certain zones in the south.

The SW is just too intertwined religiously than to bring religion to the fore.

the major culprits are from certain zones in the south.


Sir, permit me to be blunt here, the certain region is the South East(I owe no one an apology for this). I'm in no way trying to cast aspersions on anyone.

The fraudulent CAN has shown itself as the religious wing of the PDP(who takes them serious anyway?). Come 2015, the PDP and Jonathan will be punished @ the polls. Bigotry must not be rewarded. Obasanjo a Christian ran and won in 99 and 03, but never used his religion nor tribe as a tool. He used his works/achievement/projects to campaign in 2003 and 2007 on behalf of Umaru Yaradua. The PDP of today reeks bigotry

abuayman: Professor Yemi, may God bless yhu and bless yhur hand also for writing this apt. As for PDP/Jonathan, continue dividing this country on religious line. God is watching.
I simply regretted taking part in 2011 election

ouch! u rigged for pdp bt u want God to cath only GEJ, smh

Islam has proven itself to be a terrorist organisation for that reason alone and as a christian who value his life and know that Islam is just a tickling time bomb waiting to explode I will not support any one or party that will promote Islam... So if I refuse to vote APC because of some notorious and suspicious jihadist in their midst then I'm right I don't care what professor bla thinks. I don't give a Bleep

ibrahym47: ouch! u rigged for pdp bt u want God to cath only GEJ, smh

.
Guy no mind me o, I no know Sey e go reach like dis

Aregbesola is a die-hard, Islamic fundamentalist worse than Osama bin laden. The heartless man that took hijab wearing Muslims into a Christain baptist high school

ilugunboy: Food for thought....


If only we can turn back the hand of time....I will always regret that decision I made in voting Jonathan based on sentiment and not on any known antecedent...

I actively campaigned against him because he ran away from debating with his co-contestants!! What kind of president does that A debate carries more message than any rally where they only sing and dance and make jest of the opposing side can carry!!

It was a clear cut mark of incompetence to me and to this day, I'm yet to be proven wrong!!

ilugunboy:


Gbawe....

I agreed with you..but you should have in mind that not all southern Christians really are involved in this shameful act of religion bigotry....the major culprits are from certain zones in the south.

The SW is just too intertwined religiously than to bring religion to the fore.

I am aware of this. Factually, the main culprits are from the Southern part of Nigeria even as we all know those specifically guilty of ethno-religious bigotry and discrimination to the point of myopia and clannishness i.e the SE. The fact is that most Yorubas have never had any use for religious discrimination. Consequently not many Yorubas, except for desperadoes in the employment of GEJ and the PDP like Okupe et al, will peddle the childishly idiotic garbage that the APC is an Islamic Party or has an agenda of "Islamisation" for Nigeria.

We all know that this message is being driven by a desperate President wanting to retain power by all means without consideration for the lasting and deep damage he is doing which he will likely escape personally same as Odili has essentially escaped his deliberate wickedness of pioneering militancy to be living large today while others wallow in poverty and deprivation.

Jonathan has deliberately moved Nigeria back to the pre and post civil war days of mutual ethnic loathing and suspicion that, to the detriment of Nigeria, made it very difficult for Nigerians to be anything but their own worst enemies. A dearth of ideas everywhere and just 'cold war' standstill allowing GEJ and co to get away with hideous misrule and probably the worst level of looting Nigeria has ever experienced. We are seeing precisely same today as experienced in our darkest historical moment . Those doing GEJ's bidding blindly should consider the future beyond this Presidency when perhaps a Moslem Northerner is President yet they have childishly and self-destructively gone public with their hatred, deep disdain and intolerance of the North and Islam. Even the SW, because we have rejected the idea of hating the North blindly and refused to cast unquestioning ethno-religious support for GEJ, is not spared this mindless hate. Tomorrow some will cry 'marginalization' without realising the role their unbridled and hideously open show of hatred and intolerance against their fellow Nigerians played in making others afraid to trust them with ultimate power.

ilugunboy, omenka and Gbawe, thanks for ignoring those fools

earthgreeners: ilugunboy, omenka and Gbawe, thanks for ignoring those fools

Bros, I ignore fools in general. When adults talk they are the ignorant children who should remain silent yet we know cheap mobile browsing now gives every nuisance a voice and a platform to air their views however putrid and inane. That does not mean wise and intelligent posters should join issues with every one of these hateful and vile cretins.

When imbecilic Yaradua entered Aso Rock, the first thing he did was appointing fundamentalists and terrorists as powerful cabinet members.
inspector general police-Muslim.
Minister of Petroleum-Muslim.
CBN governor-Muslim.
Yaradua islamized Nigerian and today all the top Security agencies in Nigeria are manned by Muslims, all the commisoners of police in SE are all Fulani muslims.


Muslims are stupid and usless set of people, they are protesting Gaza war but they are cheering ISIS killing christians in middle east.

Al Jazeera, PressTV are relaying Israeli onslaught in Gaza but they turn blind eyes on ISIS and Islamic expansionists in Iraq, Syria, Nigeria and CAR.

Departure of Islam is the arrival of peace~Buddah Monk

Islam is a religion of terror
say no to islam.
Muslims are the worst religious bigots in the world.
APC is a muslim brotherhood, the political arm of Boko Haram.

Buhari-
kwankwaso.
Nyakor
Shettima.
Shekau.

PDP did not tell me anything, my human instinct revealed to me that APC are out to deep the evil koran in the Atlantic Ocean.

Nigerian should vote according to their faith~MuhaMadman Buhari.

Kwankwaso breaking beer bottles and arresting young girls on bumshots.

Nyakor-fighting Boko Haram is declaring war agianst the North.

APC- DEVIL ON THE HORSEBACK

barcanista: the major culprits are from certain zones in the south.


Sir, permit me to be blunt here, the certain region is the South East(I owe no one an apology for this). I'm in no way trying to cast aspersions on anyone.

The fraudulent CAN has shown itself as the religious wing of the PDP(who takes them serious anyway?). Come 2015, the PDP and Jonathan will be punished @ the polls. Bigotry must not be rewarded. Obasanjo a Christian ran and won in 99 and 03, but never used his religion nor tribe as a tool. He used his works/achievement/projects to campaign in 2003 and 2007 on behalf of Umaru Yaradua. The PDP of today reeks bigotry

So true! SE (Ibos) are the most bigoted people and they can deny it all they want, no other part of Nigeria is so insular and shortsighted! One day, GEJ will be out of power and the next president could be a Muslim and from one of the regions they've abused so much, on that day they will be put to shame!