Oyetola they say, is a weak candidate who could be easily defeated by a strong opposition candidate in the main election
Former Governor of Lagos State and National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), will realise on Saturday, February 19 if he is still the famed kingmaker.
He will be testing his popularity against those of his former protege, Rauf Aregbesola, who is the Minister of Interior.
Aregbesola was a former governor of Osun State who wants to stop his predecessor, Governor Gboyega Oyetola from getting the APC’s governorship ticket in this Saturday’s primary of the party.
A section of the APC in Osun who are backing Aregbesola, have given reasons why they want Osun State Governor Gboyega Oyetola out of office.
According to Punch, they gave the reasons in a rejoinder to an article titled, ‘Open letter to Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu: The Osun calabash must not be broken”, written by one Akanni Omo Oba.
The leaders, under the aegis of The Osun Progressives, said Oyetola is too weak to win a governorship contest in Osun against a formidable opposition candidate. .
According to Punch Newspaper, among the leaders who signed the rejoinder are Former Chairman, Alliance for Democracy and ex-Secretary to Osun State Government, Osun, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti; former Osun speaker, Najim Salam; Adelowo Adebiyi.
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Others are Osun APC factional leader, Rasaq Salinsile; Alhaji Issa Adesiji; Kolapo Alimi; Adelani Baderinwa; Nureni Adebisi; Mrs. Aina Ogundare and Akeem Olaoye.
Some of the issues raised by the leaders are attacks on Aregbesola’s legacies and alleged imposition of leaders on party members.
They also claimed that by “political arrangement”, Oyetola is expected to spend four years in office.
“The fact is that as of 2018, Osun Central Senatorial District had ruled for 11 and half years and Osun West Senatorial District had only governed the state for one year 10 months and so, the agitation for the Osun West Senatorial District to produce the next Governor was fierce and huge. However, Aregbesola complied with the directive of Tinubu by swimming against the political tide and did everything possible to ensure that Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola emerge as the candidate of the APC. That decision alone fragmented the party such that a section of the party decamped to ADP,” part of the rejoinder read.
They also alleged that Oyetola is a weak candidate who could be easily defeated by a strong opposition candidate.
“It should be noted that there are so many factors that were responsible for the declaration of the last governorship election being inconclusive, among which was the decamping of a section of our party to another party, but the major factor was the mere fact that Oyetola was a weak candidate and unpopular in his Local Government, Boripe Local Government,” the factional leaders claimed.
They complained that Oyetola from the inception of his administration labeled his predecessor, Aregbesola, as “someone who did not want him to win the election and someone with whom he should not associate.”
The TOP leaders faulted Oyetola for reversing major policies of Aregbesola’s administration “spitefully”.
“Governor Oyetola started a campaign of calumny against Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola and politics of segregation within the party such that whoever is perceived to be associated with or harbour any interest in the legacy of Ogbeni or commitment to him is alienated from the government and the party no matter his contribution to the success of the party.
“Under Governor Oyetola, you have to be pro-him and anti-Aregbesola for you to have any consideration in the government and the party.
“The governor started a vigorous campaign of hatred and hostility excoriating the administration of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to the extent that people were asking question: was this Governor not the same man who served as Chief of Staff to Aregbesola without rancor for eight years?” the rejoinder added.