• Conflict threatens Ogun APC chances in 2015 vote

By Victor Ebimomi 

Ogun State may be a long shot for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the ballot next year as Governor Ibikunle Amosun and his predecessor, Segun Osoba, have dug their feet deeper into their trenches.

The two men are head butting over the control of state party machinery, which has polarised the members.

Amosun considers himself the APC leader in the state; Osoba feels otherwise, since he is a national leader of the party and former Governor who played a prominent role in Amosun’s election in 2011.

Before now, both men had tried to keep their disagreement away from public knowledge. Days before the party’s council congress, they appeared together on a podium at a rally and denied having any rift.

But the lid was blown at the council congress on April 12 when the exercise was marred by conflict in some areas as a result of party members’ divided loyalty between the two men.

Parallel congresses were held in some councils, including Ijebu North where a faction loyal to Osoba held its congress at the party secretariat on Adeboye Road, Ijebu Igbo. Amosun’s loyalists held theirs at Ijebu Igbo town hall.

The scenario repeated itself on April 26 during the state congress. Each faction elected its own executives.

The congresses, held simultaneously at separate locations in Abeokuta, were monitored by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies.

However, state APC spokesman, Sola Lawal, disclosed in an interview with TheNiche that whatever problem might have occurred in the party or between Amosun and Osoba has been resolved.

“In a vibrant democracy there is room for disagreement. It is already taken care of by the party. They even had dinner together in Abuja on April 15,” he said.

Drawing a parallel from Lagos State, Lawal recalled that it was once reported that there was disagreement between Governor Babatunde Fashola and his predecessor, Bola Tinubu, which was later resolved.

He said the problem in the council congress was not as a result of divided loyalty but the normal manouvring in politics to outwit one another.

“There was no crisis. If an individual is vying for an office, that is not a contest but when it involves two people, it becomes a contest and anything can happen.

“But I must tell you there was no crisis although there were abnormal cases of disenfranchisement in some areas.”

Lawal advised APC supporters to disregard any report of disagreement because it is the work of mischief makers.

But TheNiche learnt that opposition parties are feasting on the rift between Amosun and Osoba, which threatens the chances of the APC heading into the general election in 2015.