LAGOS – Members of the Oranmiyan Movement, a political group in Osun state, loyal to Minister of Interior Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, on Monday said it may not support the second term bid of Governor Gboyega Oyetola in next year’s governorship election in the state.

Members of the group who are in the All Progressives Congress (APC), said Oyetola could not have won his governorship election in 2018 without the support of his predecessor, Aregbesola and the group.

It, however, said since assuming office, Oyetola has rewarded Aregbesola with ingratitude by using the scarce resources of the state to rubbish his legacies while also witch-hunting members of the Movement.

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Speaking with DAILY INDEPENDENT on Tuesday, two leading members of the movement who do not want their names in print, said the only offence Aregbesola committed was that Oyetola claimed that he (Aregbesola) never supported his aspiration to become governor in 2018.

They, however, claimed that Aregbesola could not have decided who will be his successor as he, a loyal member of the progressive family, yielded totally to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, former Lagos state governor and APC national leader.

Going down memory lane, they claimed Oyetola never contributed in any way to Aregbesola’s victory in the 2007 governorship election in Osun state but was brought by as his candidate for the position of Chief of Staff after Aregbesola reclaimed his mandate through the court in 2010.

“The only crime Oyetola has been saying Ogbeni (Aregbesola) committed was that he did not want him to succeed him as governor. That was why he has been demonising the man and using his aides to say all manner of lies against him.

“Only a fool will agree with their claim that Aregbesola never wanted Oyetola to succeed him. Ask anybody in Osun today if Oyetola on his own can win a councillorship position in his hometown of Iragbiji without Aregbesola’s intervention. Can Oyetola tell us what he has achieved politically in Osun before he became Chief of Staff and now governor?

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“Oyetola couldn’t have become Chief of Staff if not for Asiwaju Tinubu because there are people who worked tirelessly for Aregbesola’s emergence as governor and Oyetola was not part of them”.

“It was when he became Chief of Staff in 2011 that he started using the position to feather his political nest but even at that he was still not popular but only enjoying the goodwill of Ogbeni who has become a household name in the state.

“Look at the 2018 governorship election. We had rerun because of Oyetola’s unpopularity. Then the clamour was for Osun West senatorial district to produce Aregbesola’s successor. The people of the state felt since the return of democracy in 1999, the West has not produced a governor.

“Oyetola is from Osun Central. Papa Bisi Akande is also from Osun Central. His successor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola is from Osun Central. The last governor that came from the West was the late Senator Isiaka Adeleke since 1992. Nobody from Osun West has become governor now since 1999.

“When the agitation for Osun West was so much, Asiwaju then suggested that we should pick Oyetola who is from Osun Central. That was one of the reasons why we had serious problems in that election coupled with Oyetola’s unpopularity.

“Aregbesola ascribed everything he became in life to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and he deferred to him on so many things. If Aregbesola had wanted to become Lagos State governor in 2007 based on his popularity and Asiwaju endorsed his candidacy, he will win. But Asiwaju said we should go to Osun and he obeyed”.

“If Asiwaju had recommended Oyetola and Aregbesola refuses, will he arrest the governor with the police? Even in Lagos where Asiwaju reigns supreme, don’t we have scenarios where his loyalists challenged his authority?

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“If Aregbesola who is not directly under Asiwaju’s control can still obey your brother and make you governor and then you are treating him this way, then it shows how ungrateful he can be. He should have the fear of God.

“Nobody supported Oyetola in Osun. He became governor today through God and the support of Aregbesola. Asiwaju nominated him but who campaigned for him in all the local governments?

“There is no doubt that Asiwaju instructed us to support Oyetola. He preferred him to be Chief of Staff, Aregbesola yielded to him. He also preferred him to be governor, they also yielded to his request.

“Aregbesola himself did not decide who became Chief of Staff; he did not decide who became the SSG. He also did not decide who became his deputy. And you are now saying Aregbesola did not decide outside of Asiwaju that you must be his successor.

“The deputy governor then, Titi Laoye – Tomori was given to Aregbesola by the party structure. Aregbesola did not know her from Adam. The party said the deputy must be an experienced teacher and after many people were nominated, Laoye-Tomori was chosen as the most qualified.

“The person who brought Tomori is today the Commissioner for Environment in Osun.

“The SSG then, Adeoti was brought by the party. Aregbesola had no choice because the party insisted that they wanted the SSG and he gave it to the party. It was Asiwaju that brought Oyetola and he said he wanted the Chief of Staff position”.

“So, Oyetola should tell us who Aregbesola nominated outside of Asiwaju’s knowledge. It has always been Asiwaju’s intervention on everything. How can that now be the crime Oyetola will punish Aregbesola for?”

Speaking in a similar vein, the second leader of the Oranmiyan group said: “90 per cent of those in government today are in Aregbesola’s government. The governor was the Chief of Staff to Aregbesola. The Secretary to the State Government (SSG) was the Civil Service Commission chairman under Aregbesola. He was the first DG of Ara FM built by Aregbesola.

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“The Chief of Staff to Governor Oyetola today was a special adviser, cabinet rank adviser in Aregbesola’s cabinet as DG Office of Economic Development and Partnerships (OEDP). The deputy chief of staff to Oyetola was Senior Special Assistant on SDG in Aregbesola’s government.

“How can these same people now sit down and be demonising Aregbesola, accusing him of plunging the state into debt? We will not keep quiet and allow that to happen.

“They are praying for PDP to field a candidate like Senator Ademola Adeleke again who many don’t consider as a serious personality. One thing is certain, if PDP fields a strong candidate next year, Oyetola is a goner”.

When contacted, Ismail Omipidan, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Oyetola said he will not respond to faceless individuals.

“I don’t always respond to faceless individuals,” he said.

However, a Special Adviser in Governor Oyetola’s cabinet who spoke on condition of anonymity said those claiming they can stop the governor’s second term should stop arrogating the powers of God to themselves.

“It is very funny when you see mere mortals arrogating the powers of God to themselves. It pleases Allah that Oyetola should be the governor of Osun today. If Allah delights that he continue in office for another four years, which human being can stand in His way?” he asked.

https://independent.ng/osun-2022-oranmiyan-movement-vows-to-stop-oyetolas-2nd-term/

No hope for Oyetola in 2022 governorship poll in Osun State.

Nigeria plays plot is day in day out for years

What down he do?

MegaDesign:
What down he do?

What do you even mean sir?

It is a shame if we are letting that Aregbe pull strings in my state after not paying salaries for so many years!

Oyetola will be judged by his fruits and not by Aregbe's Oranmiyan!

Osun 2022: Final showdown for Oyetola, Aregbesola

Watchers of the political goings on in Osun State believe that next year’s governorship poll in the state presents a golden opportunity for the current Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and the incumbent Governor Gboyega Oyetola to settle their old scores.

Aregbesola is the immediate past governor of the state. And, since Oyetola succeeded him in 2018, there has been no love lost between them. The two leaders had on several occasions denied that there is any rift between them, but their actions and body language reflecting through their supporters and loyalists show that they are not on one page as far as the All Progressives Congress (APC) is concerned.

Having noticed that their feud was affecting the cohesion of Osun APC, the party’s National leaders, Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu and Chief Adebisi Akande, made attempts to settle their differences in December 2020 at Akande’s country home, Ila-Oragun.

Sources said Aregbesola and Oyetola have been trying to play down their rift with maturity based on their relationship with Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. While Aregbesola regards Tinubu as his political godfather, Oyetola is said to be a nephew to the former Lagos State governor.



As such, the two political leaders avoided washing their dirty linens in public, even when their loyalists and supporters do not want to let the sleeping dog lie. On social media platforms, they throw banters, exchange allegations and trade words on behalf of their principals.

Prominent among these loyalists, who have been sustaining the proxy war on social media are the Special Adviser to Governor Oyetola on Education, Jamiu Olawumi, and Bola Ilori, who is serving in Aregbesola’s office in Abuja.

How It All Began
INSIDERS told The Guardian that after Aregbesola campaigned for Oyetola, who served as his Chief of Staff till 2018, and assisted him to emerge as governor, the minister was still interested in calling the shots in Osun State APC. But, that idea did not go down well with Oyetola.

So, in order to ensure that he did not give any chances for Aregbesola to take over the party’s structure, the governor declined from appointing those seen as Aregbesola’s strong loyalists, into his kitchen cabinet. The development greatly riled the Aregbesola’s camp.

“One thing you must know is that a gvernor of a state is the leader of the ruling political party in that state. To ensure that he has full grip of the party and Government, he would have to work with those he can trust. Even if he considers those who worked with Aregbesola when he was the governor of the state as Commissoners or Special Advisers, they would have to transfer loyalty to Oyetola. That’s what it should be,” a top government official had confided in The Guardian.

Aside the issue of appointments, sources said Aregbesola was not happy because Oyetola did not back him before he got his ministerial appointment. It was gathered that the governor had a plan of rewarding Senator Iyiola Omisore with the ministerial slot for working for his victory in the 2018 governorship re-rerun in the state.

Some insiders also revealed that their rift worsened when Oyetola reversed some of the policies of Aregbesola’s government. This was said to have infuriated Aregbesola. One of these policies is the controversial single school uniform Aregbesola introduced in 2013 for all public primary and secondary schools.


Aregbesola

The reclassification of the public school system and the abolition of single-sex schools across the state were some of the 26 issues reviewed by Oyetola’s administration. Other issues reviewed include the introduction of ‘Opon Imo,’ otherwise referred to as the tablet of knowledge, issuance of primary school leaving certificates, change of schools’ identities, ownership of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), operations of Osun State University, the merger of basic and high schools across many communities, among others.

Though the governor had said the decision to reverse some of these policies was borne out of “Thank You” tour across the state after his electoral victory, some argued that it was to rubbish the legacies of Aregbesola.



However, a chieftain of Osun APC, Sunday Akere blamed loyalists and supporters of the duo for making the alleged rift pronounced. He claimed, “Aregbesola and Oyetola are best of friends. Their supporters and loyalists are the ones engaging in unnecessary tantrums on social media. They should stop it.”

2022 And Oyetola’s Fate
WHATEVER the case, 2022 is close and the alleged Aregbesola-Oyetola beef is getting hotter and hotter. Although, Oyetola has not publicly and formally declared his intention of occupying the Oke-Fia Government House beyond 2022, the body language of the governor and those of his allies suggest that he is interested in second term. Also, the governor’s loyalists and supporters have been canvassing for his return in 2022.

As part of subtle campaigns of Oyetola towards preparations for his purported second term ambition, the Office of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Civic Engagement has been meeting with traditional rulers, politicians, community leaders and residents of the state in what it tagged “Governor’s Family Meeting.”

At these meetings currently ongoing across the state, attendants have been showering encomiums on Oyetola and praying that his second term dream would come true. At these meetings, Oyetola’s Commissoners and other aides had been calling for the people of the state to support their principal.

Sources within the party and state government said Senator Iyiola Omisore’s defection to APC was part of the strategies of Oyetola to win Osun East in the forthcoming poll. Omisore, a former deputy governor of the state who also served one term as senator for Osun East, moved to APC from the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

This sudden romance with Oyetola started in 2018 when the former lawmaker helped the ruling party win a close election that brought in Governor Oyetola. Mr Omisore was the candidate of the SDP in that election. To further compensate him, Oyetola appointed Omisore’s running mate, Yemi Lawal as Commissioner for Youths and Sports.

Sources said Omisore had been accepted into the party in order to wrestle control of Osun East with Aregbesola, who is also from there ahead of 2022.

When Omisore officially joined the APC recently, his supporters escorted him to the registration point at his unit in Moore, Ile-Ife with chants of “Oyetola for second term.” He was welcomed into the party by the deputy governor, Benedict Alabi, and Prince Gboyega Famodun, the state chairman of the party.



Omisore and Aregbesola are not the best of friends and the minister has never hiden his feelings about that. Aregbesola had kicked against the admission of Omisore into the APC.

The Guardian gathered that another strategy of Oyetola to ensure that he continues to rule Osun beyond 2022 is the luring of the state chairman of the party, Gboyega Famodun, to his side. Famodun’s tenure had lapsed in October 2018 but he has retained the position because Oyetola has not allowed the party to organise a state congress to elect new leaders in the state. Insiders noted that this is to ensure Famodun midwive Oyetola’s emergence as the party’s candidate for the 2022 gubernatorial poll.

In February, 2021, posters canvassing votes for Oyetola for the 2022 Gubernatorial Elections had surfaced in some areas in Osogbo, the state capital. The posters that were pasted directly opposite the Government House, Oke-Fia and under the November 27 Interchange, along Abere, on Osogbo/Gbongan/Ibadan Expressway, read “continuity 2022, Gboyega Oyetola for second time” instead of “Continuity 2022, Gboyega Oyetola for Second Term.”

The Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Ismail Omipidan asked those behind the campaign posters to tarry a while and wait for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to give nod for electioneering activities. Omipidan said Oyetola was still preoccupied with delivery of quality service to the people of the state.

Settling Scores
AREGBESOLA’s camp appears not to be relaxing in ensuring that Oyetola does not last beyond 2022 in the Government House. Sources said the minister would settle scores with the governor by working against his second term ambition. Aregbesola’s foot soldiers and campaign groups have been mobilising and engaging with key stakeholders in the state, especially those who have lost touch with the governnance styles of Oyetola. One of these groups is Oranmiyan, a socio-political group in the state. Some civil societies organisations and market women are said to have pitched tent with Aregbesola’s camp in order to dislodge Oyetola next year.

Some APC members who complained of the poor welfarism they have witnessed since the inception of Oyetola have expressed displeasure and longed for a Governor who they claim is miserly. Another factor that may work against Oyetola’s determination to secure a second term is zoning. Although, the APC might have waved the tradition in 2018 when Oyetola, who is from Osun Central Senatorial district enjoyed the support of Tinubu to emerge the party’s candidate. This time around, insiders said the agitation for Osun West’s turn may resurface.



Prince Diran Odeyemi, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, the major opposition political party in Osun had said that the party was looking at fielding Senator Ademola Adeleke in the forthcoming poll.

The party, though still factionalised, hopes to wrestle power from the APC. Odeyemi had said recently, “As a party, PDP is offering Senator Ademola Adeleke the opportunity, having done well on the ballot the last time and he has the right to accept or decline. Till now, no one else, including Ogunbiyi, who contested primary with him the last time has not shown interest. It is only Adeleke that we are looking at.

“But having said that, we are not closing our door against others that are interested in vying for the PDP ticket. Anyone that is interested can join the race.”

But, sources said that the APC may not still consider zoning in 2022 having succeeded in waving it at the last governorship election.

Whatever be the case, the battle for the soul of Osun has covertly begun. All eyes are on the forthcoming gubernatorial poll to see who wins or loses in the unfolding high drama and intrigues.


https://m.guardian.ng/politics/osun-2022-final-showdown-for-oyetola-aregbesola/amp/

Johnnyessence:
No hope for Oyetola in 2022 governorship poll in Osun State.

You don't know how governorship race works, Governors always have their ways. It is better for Aregbe and his gang to settle their rif with the governor or else they will displace them permanently in Osun politics

Johnnyessence:
No hope for Oyetola in 2022 governorship poll in Osun State.

Says who?

ERockson:
You don't know how governorship race works, Governors always have their ways. It is better for Aregbe and his gang to settle their rif with the governor or else they will displace them permanently in Osun politics

they are not settling their issues and it is escalating by the day. Oyetola should forget 2022 governorship poll. He will be roundly defeated in the poll.

Amotolongbo:
Says who?

says me.