Former Ogun State Governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba, on Sunday disproved a claim by former President Olusegun Obasanjo that the late legend, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, was never elected the Yoruba leader.

Osoba, who presented an August 13, 1966, edition of Daily Sketch that reported the unanimous election of Awolowo by leaders of diverse political leanings, said Obasanjo’s statement was an outright disruption of facts.

He disproved the former president’s claim during an interaction with select journalists in Lagos, saying the first Military Governor of Western Region, Major General Adeyinka Adebayo ,presided over series of meetings that threw up Awolowo as the Yoruba leader on August 12, 1966, in Ibadan.

He added that Obasanjo was the then Garrison Commander at the now 2nd Machanised Division of the Nigerian Army and a member of Adebayo’s cabinet, hence there was no way he would not know about Awolowo’s emergence.

He named leaders of diverse political interests who attended the Ibadan meeting “to include late Dr. Koye Majekodunmi, who had different political ideology with Chief Awolowo. Late Chief TOS Benson, a staunch supporter of the late Chief Nnamdi Azikiwe till death, was not part of Awolowo’s political family.”

Osoba also named the Chairman of the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN), Chief Adisa Akinloye and a chieftain of National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC) late Chief Adeniran Ogunsanya among those who elected Awolowo as the Yoruba leader.

He said: “I want everyone to know Awolowo was released from prison two weeks before his election as the leader of the Yoruba.

I will give you more facts. He was unanimously elected by all stakeholders. On August 10, 1966, Adebayo held meetings with intellectuals and activists, among others.

“On August 11, 1966, Adebayo held meetings with the traditional rulers in Yoruba land. On August 12, Adebayo also held the meeting of all stakeholders and there was not a dissenting voice against Awolowo’s election as the Yoruba leader. These are some of the facts. So, I can never agree with Obasanjo.

“I was present at the forum where Awolowo was unanimously elected the leader of Yorubas. The election involved all stakeholders including political actors, cultural leaders and intellectuals in Yorubaland.

“I have records to prove Awolowo was elected aside the newspaper publications made after the election in Ibadan. I disagree with Obasanjo on his claim that the late legend was handpicked by some of his supporters,” he said.

The former governor faulted Obasanjo on another claim that late Chief Adisa Akinloye kicked against the election of Awolowo, noting that even until his death, Akinloye “was one of the admirers of Awolowo.”

He therefore said Akinloye “was the one who coined the word Afenifere. I was close to Akinloye even during his days in London where he exiled. He never disagreed with the fact that Awolowo must be respected as a person.

“There is a difference between being members of different political parties and having respect for a particular person. When Aminu Kano was alive, he often visited the Sardauna of Sokoto for consultation. But they never shared the same political ideologies. I do not know why anyone should denigrate the reputation of Awolowo.”

He explained the rationales behind Awolowo’s emergence as the leader of Yoruba, noting that before his imprisonment, the Action Group (AG) “had been winning elections in other regions aside the Western region.

“Awolowo had won election in Ogoja area in Cross River State. He also won election in the Middle Belt. Likewise, Awolowo made edgeway in Kanuri. He succeeded in creating Pan Nigerian image for himself despite some claims that he was tribal.

“Another reason was that at that time, General Yakubu Gowon had emerged as the Head of State and Awolowo did not support him. Col. Odumegwu Ojukwu had also emerged as leader for the Igbos,” he said.

But he said there was no clear-cut leader in Yoruba land, explaining that the Yorubas “needed someone who would be the rallying point. But there was no one who could contest it with Awolowo.

“Besides, the militants, the Agbekoyas, were holding the military to ransom at that time. It was only Awolowo who could go into the jungles to persuade them to lay-down their arms. These were some factors that led to the emergence of Awolowo as the Yoruba leader,” the former governor explained.

He said it was imperative for him to put the record straight “to avoid the distortion of history. I hate to play the role of a mind reader. But my worry is that if I failed to come out as someone who was involved in the activities leading to the election of Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, history would be distorted.

“In future, historians, researchers will base their conclusions on the Obasanjo’s record of events. He was also an active participant in events at that period. As the Garrison Commander in Ibadan, he was an active member of General Adeyinka Adebayo’s cabinet.

I do not think he would have forgotten so soon the sequence of events that threw up Awolowo as Yoruba leader,” Osoba said.