Osun 2018: Group praises Aregbesola for averting corruption, vote buying


By Okunola Ayodele


The resort to direct primary in the Osun gubernatorial poll has further preserved the integrity and Omoluabi ethos of Yoruba and the people of the state of Osun, the Oodua Nationalist Coalition, (ONAC) has said.


The group said the exercise in Osun has saved the public no fewer than 4 billion naira that the over 30 aspirants would have been compelled to spend or borrow to expend in the bazar campaign usually for the highest bidder.

ONAC said indirect primary has polarized the people and set local party members against their local leaders in a chain of distrust that has created mutual suspicion among party members and the larger society.


In a statement on Monday, ONAC made available to Irohinoodua said the idea of opting for direct primary in Osun has eliminated the potential of people selling their conscience in the drive for a credible candidate in the forthcoming gubernatorial poll. The group praised the State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola for sticking to principle and the highest moral standards in the face of propaganda and lies.


ONAC said popular candidates must never be afraid of facing the people. “They should be interested in going to the market in the day time and not in the night when all sorts of shady deals are traded. We are once again proud of what Ogbeni Aregbesola has done. We urge other states of the Federation to copy the good example of the government and people of Osun State. The group said indirect primary is a hub for criminal cartels who trade off the mandate of weak and helpless people calculated to produce a candidate that may end up to be the least popular figure.

The group said direct primary is open, more participatory and inclusive.


ONAC said: “In the past few months, we have seen the emergence of a new culture of electoral manipulation in Yorubaland. This represents the worst form of corruption and cultural genocide ever seen in Yoruba history. Candidates camp delegates and offer them hundreds of thousands of naira to secure their votes. This is nothing but cultural genocide. By resorting to direct primary, the people of Osun have once again demonstrated their preference for integrity,” the statement signed by ONAC’s Director of Publicity, Mr Martins Adeleke said.


He said the direct primary election represents the most democratic culture any one can adopt. “If Comrade Aregbesola is not popular and he wanted to manipulate the result of the primary, he should have opted for indirect primary where a few number of people from the wards would be offered money against the will of the entire population.”


ONAC described indirect primary as a slow cancer with deadly consequences. “We thank Aregbesola for performing the necessary surgical operation to stop the spread across Nigeria of the cancer in Osogbo. Nigerians should be grateful to him. His action was revolutionary and driven by the larger interest of the people.”