OLALEKAN ADETAYO writes that Action Congress of Nigeria in Oyo State is not only serving as the opposition, but its governorship aspirants are already forging an alliance to enable them to pick a strong candidate who will slug it out with the incumbent governor, Adebayo Alao-Akala in the 2011 poll In many developing countries and emerging democracies, as soon as election is won and lost and the ruling party emerges, a lot of realignment follows. Many of those who belong to the party that was not lucky in the election make moves to defect into the winning party, while those who have resolved to stay put in their parties will continue to engage the ruling parties and their members.
The above scenario is typically playing out in Oyo State, South West Nigeria where the Peoples Democratic Party is calling the shot. The 2007 elections in the state threw up the incumbent governor, Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, who incidentally was the PDP standard bearer for the poll. Since his declaration as the governor by the Independent National Electoral Commission, a lot of water, literally speaking, has passed under the bridge in the Pacesetter State.
In the quest to belong to the mainstream, some of those who contested against Alao-Akala in the election have since retraced their steps and joined him in what they called developing the state. One of such persons is the governorship candidate of the Alliance for Democracy in the election, Dr. Gbola Adetunji. Adetunji is currently the chairman of a pressure group working for the return of Alao-Akala to the Agodi Government House in 2011. The group is known as Campaign for Akala‘s Re-Election.
Another big fish, as it were, caught by the net of the governor‘s camp is the candidate of the then Action Congress (now Action Congress of Nigeria) in the election, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja. When Adedoja accepted the olive branch extended to him by the governor, he was made the state Commissioner for Education and just a few weeks ago he emerged the Minister of Special Duties having been nominated by the governor after the then minister, Mr. Remi Babalola resigned from the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
But in spite of this romance, the ACN in the state has remained a major opposition party with a former governor of the state, Alhaji Lam Adesina, as its leader. Chieftains of the party have been critical of the government of the day. The party‘s Director of Publicity and Strategy, Mr. Wasiu Olatubosun, has been doing a yeoman‘s job of issuing statements that are critical of the government and has remained a thorn in the flesh of the governor and his aides who are always on their toes, responding to the party‘s critical statements.
At a point, the ACN called on members of the state House of Assembly to commence impeachment process against the governor. It hinged its call for the governor‘s removal on alleged numerous breaches on the rights of the citizens. The party also claimed that the call became imperative in view of the great danger which Alao-Akala‘s remaining months in office portend for the state.
The ACN in one of its statements said, ”The economic situation in Oyo today is alarming as evident in the population of residents who find it difficult to have three-square meal on daily basis as well as the number of able-bodied men and women, who resort to alms-begging or eating from the dung for survival. People are just dying of hunger and economic frustration most especially in the big cities while a government relishes wasteful spending.”
”This development has adversely affected the peace and tranquillity once enjoyed in the state before the current reign of terror.”
The Elders Council of the party has also criticised the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over alleged poor handling of corruption cases levelled against top government officials in the state. Specifically, the party cited the alleged failure of the commission to act on the outcome of its investigation on the N8.2bn illegal deductions from the local government councils‘ allocations and the multi-million naira café project at the Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State. It challenged the EFCC to take necessary actions against the indicted officials without further delay.
Lately, the party also raised the alarm over an alleged arms build-up by the state government. The plot, the party alleged, was carried out by the governor in his bid to win a second term in the office in 2011. The party alleged that the governor has procured 10 new Armoured Personnel Carrier, sophisticated guns and other ammunition which have been stockpiled at the Presidential Lodge of the Government House in Ibadan.
It further alleged that the government had fine-tuned arrangement on sewing of police and Army uniforms to be worn by factional members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers who would unleash terror on innocent citizens and opposition party members in the state.
But the state government through the governors‘ Special Adviser on Public Communications, Mr. Dotun Oyelade, has faulted these claims, describing particularly the latest allegation as silly.
He said, ”The accusation of ACN that Akala is storing arm in anticipation of an election he is poised to win is so silly.
”Opposition should be cleverer than all these even at the worst of times. In the case of APC, police summoned meeting of bankers, police and government two years ago at the height of armed siege and asked for contribution. Those APCs are Oyo State‘s contribution pending those from other stakeholders.”
But besides levelling these allegations, the ambition of the ACN in the state is to take over the reins of governance from the ruling PDP in the next election and leaders of the party are not leaving anything to chance. Indeed, Adesina had not long ago assured the people that the ACN had concluded plans to take over government from the PDP in the state in 2011, adding, however, that the task could only be achieved if there is free and fair election.
And to really accomplish this, many ACN members have interestingly begun to show interest in contesting the 2011 governorship election on the party‘s platform. Among those who have shown interests to vie for the ticket are Senator Abiola Ajimobi, Chief Olufemi Lanlehin, Mr. Soji Akanbi, Dr. Bayo Adewusi, Prof. Wale Oyemakinde, Prof. Wole Akinboade, Mr. Charles Obisesan, Mr. Kazeem Adedeji and Dr. Niyi Adelakun.
Ajimobi, apart from being a former federal lawmaker, contested against the incumbent governor in 2007 on the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples Party. He even dragged Alao-Akala as well as other stakeholders to protest the outcome of the poll. He later left the ANPP for the ACN where he has since oiled his political machinery again for the governorship. Lanlehin, a former cabinet member in the Bola Tinubu‘s administration as Lagos State governor defected to the ACN from the PDP in 2009 after making futile attempts to contest governorship election on the platform of the party.
With the array of aspirants in the ACN, there is no doubt that the party is set to wrest power from the PDP but the fear in some quarters border on how it will conduct free and fair primaries that will produce an acceptable candidate for all its members.
As difficult as the task seems, Adesina had always reiterated the party‘s resolve to achieve that. The assurance is coming as political analysts insist that only a united ACN can win an election.
The ACN leader while promising free and fair primaries within the party, recently assured the people of the state that whoever emerges as the party‘s governorship candidate would do his best to turn the state around.
He therefore enjoined their supporters to emulate the cordial relationship that existed at the party leadership and to also eschew bitterness and crisis among themselves pointing out that the calibre of the party‘s governorship aspirants was enough evidence to show its readiness to give purposive governance to the people of the state.
To confirm that there is a cordial relationship among the aspirants, there is already a forum of ACN governorship aspirants in place being led by Oyemakinde.
Oyemakinde who addressed journalists the other day said the party through the forum was showcasing brotherly love and comradeship in order to liberate the people of the state.
But even as Oyemakinde holds this belief, followers of political events in the state posit that the future of the party rests on its leaders‘ ability to conduct the primaries without giving undue favour to any of the aspirants. Insofar as they are concerned that is the only sure way to wrest power not just from the incumbent governor but from the ruling PDP in the state.
Source:punchng.com
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