Akeredolu’s Victory Impels rebellion in Osun APC over 2018 Governorship ticket

By Segun Adejumo

The victory of Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the November 26, 2016 governorship election in Ondo State has strengthened some chieftains and members of the APC in Osun State who have shown their readiness to fight Governor Rauf Aregbesola over the 2018 gubernatorial ticket of the party.

CityMirrorNews noted that the defeat of Mr Olusola Oke, the candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in Ondo whose election was rumoured to have been sponsored by the National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Aregbesola was celebrated by the anti-Aregbesola APC members in Osun.

Akeredolu’s victory boosted the anti-Aregbesolas’ ego and spurred their resolution not to be on the same page with the governor on the 2018 governorship battle.

The anti-Aregbesola mocked both Tinubu and Aregbesola who they described as impostors on the loss of Oke in the Ondo election.

According to findings, some of the APC chieftains and members in Osun are battle ready to resist what they described as ‘foreseen and clear’ attempt by Aregbesola to impose candidate on the party in 2018.

There were insinuations that Aregbesola has resolved to choose his Chief of Staff, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola who is Tinubu’s kinsman as the APC governorship candidate in 2018 against the wish of the party members.

A known anti-Aregbesola is a chieftain of the APC from Osogbo Local Government, Alhaji Fatai Diekola who had been a man-Friday of the governor in his first term.

Diekola is said to be leading a team of politicians who have declared ‘political war’ against the governor in preparatory for 2018.

Also, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Honourable Lasun Yussuff, a governorship aspirant, has been erased on the good book of the governor and some other APC chieftains.

Hon. Yussuff is resolute on his ambition and plan to contest the APC governorship ticket, to give Aregbesola and Tinubu a run for their money.

But CityMirrorNews’s investigation revealed that there are many anti-Aregbesolas and some others who are oppose to imposition in the APC, but were yet to come out open. These include some close allies of the governor who are taking their time to take a shot at him.

Sizeable number of the APC stalwarts and members are unhappy with Aregbesola because of his alleged ‘Lagos agenda’, non appointment of commissioners and Special Advisers, board members, among other political appointments two years after he was sworn-in for second term.

With Akeredolu’s victory in Ondo, which had no input of Tinubu and his loyalists, the anti-Aregbesola APC group believed that they could make things happen if they parted way with the governor and his favourite candidate.

The Ondo election has spurred the ‘APC rebels’ in Osun to forge ahead on their plan to form a new political structure to weaken Aregbesola’s strength and influence in the party; and probably frustrate him out of the party, it was learnt.

CityMirrorNews noted that the belief of the anti-Aregbesola group is that with the help of the Presidency, Aregbesola’s favourite candidate would lose the Osun APC governorship primary in 2018, and his candidate would be frustrated to leave the party for AD as it happened in Ondo.

One of the anti-Aregbesolas who spoke with the medium on Monday said: “Ondo election is an eye-opener for us; and it is a warning for Aregbesola not to impose any candidate on the party in 2018. We know his agenda to impose his Chief of Staff, Oyetola. We also have it on good authority that the Plan B of the governor is to use a Permanent Secretary who is from Iwo and a business manager, an indigene of Ikire if Oyetola’s agenda fails. We know all his permutations and we are ready to resist them.

“What we are witnessing under Aregbesola is strange and we do not want anybody that will continue his style to be the governor come 2018. Look at what is happening; we don’t have commissioners, SAs, local government chairmen, board members and so on for two years now.

“Our resolution is that we don’t want anybody from Lagos or an unknown person to succeed Aregbesola. May I also say that if Aregbsola and his favourite candidate decide to go to AD, they are on their own. We are loyal APC members. What happened in Ondo will repeat itself.”

However, Aregbesola’s loyalists in Osun are also regrouping and re-strategising. The pro-Aregbesola, who are likely to be underestimated by the opposing camp, are a set of power-block, comprising party executives, former commissioners, SAs, former local government executive secretaries and non political appointees.

The pro-Aregbesola group argued that those that form the anti-Aregbesola group are the governor’s creation; people who made huge amount of money during his first term.

They believed that the anti-Aregbesolas are not being fair to the governor who empowered them.

Ondo governorship elections are mock test for Osun APC.