Osun 2014: D-Day beckons

The race to Osun State Government House, Oke-Fia, has intensified following the release of the 2014 governorship timetable by the Independent National Electoral Commission. Femi Makinde examines the issues and contentions that surround the election

With the release of the election timetable for the 2014 governorship election in Osun State and the general election coming up next year, the Independent National Electoral Commission has signalled the commencement of party politics.

Indeed, Governor Rauf Aregbesola and other aspirants eyeing the coveted Oke-Fia Government House, Osogbo, appear ready for the August 9, 2014 governorship election coming up in the 23-year-old state. According to the timetable by INEC, June 2, 2014 is the last date for the conduct of party primaries, including the resolution of disputes arising from the primaries in the state. Campaigns for the state governorship election are also scheduled to start on May 11, 2014.

Primary election would pose no problem within the ruling All Progressives Congress in the state because there seems to be no dissenting voice to the choice of Aregbesola as the candidate of the party. Various groups within the party are jostling to paste the governor’s re- election campaign posters, erect billboards and banners at every available space in the state to show they are in full support of his aspiration. But on the other hand, the Peoples Democratic Party, which is the main opposition party in the state, has three aspirants jostling for its governorship ticket. However, PDP’s performance in the August poll will be largely determined by the choice of its candidate.

The Chairman of the PDP in the state, Alhaji Gani Olaoluwa, gave the names of the three PDP governorship aspirants as Chief Wole Oke, Senator Olasunkanmi Akinlabi and Senator Iyiola Omisore. Olaoluwa said the extended executive meeting of the party had put December 31, 2013 as the deadline for anyone wishing to contest on the platform of the party to get the intention form for N5m, stating that the three aspirants were the ones who met the deadline.

Oke, a former chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Defence, is confident of picking the party’s ticket. Although he said that dislodging an incumbent governor would not be an easy task, he boasted that he would defeat Aregbesola at the poll.

In his manifesto, Oke, who is from Esa-Oke, said that the current administration of Aregbesola had been insensitive to the needs of the people, adding that the state needed to be redeemed. He said, “The state’s current leaders appear clueless regarding the real problems of the state. Osun is embarrassingly close to being declared a failed constituent unit in the federation of Nigerian states. I am prepared for this battle.” Oke’s Media Adviser, Mr. Yemi Giwa, said “aside from being physically and mentally prepared, age is on the side of this versatile philanthropic technocrat, who symbolises rich mental fecundity necessary to change Osun’s socio-economic fortunes for the better.”

While picking his intent form at the party secretariat Akinlabi, who served as a Minister of Youth Development, said the only factor which could work against the PDP from coming back to power was if the leadership imposed an unpopular candidate on the people.

He said, “All what I am asking for is a level playing field for all aspirants. Our chairman has promised that the party’s leadership would be fair to all. I have no reason to doubt him. I believe him and I am holding him by his word. If there is fairness and we all unite, we will surely chase away the present government from office. The PDP is now at a historic crossroads and it is left with a choice of presenting a good and presentable candidate without any baggage.

“We have to transform Osun State from being a heavily indebted state to a prosperous debt-free state. We have to return high standards and discipline to our school system.”

Omisore is seen in some quarters as the only contestant who could give Aregbesola a good fight because of his financial muscle, experience and connections. But some believe that certain factors would work against him. Omisore has never hidden his love for the governorship seat. The aspirant, who was a deputy governor during the Chief Bisi Akande-led Alliance for Democracy administration between 1999 and 2003, has kept criticising every policy of the Aregbesola administration. Omisore had asked the governor to reverse the reclassification of schools, stressing that the policy has caused so much pain to many pupils, who had to trek several kilometres before getting to their new schools. Omisore was also quick to accuse the governor of using the “Open Heaven Worship Centre” the state government is building in Ibodi – Odo Iju area as a gimmick to woo Christians to vote for him. The Director of Publicity, Omisore Campaign Organisation, Mr. Diran Odeyemi, said that his principal was the only aspirant who could defeat the incumbent governor and return the PDP to the Government House in the state.

Odeyemi said, “Our choice of February 8, 2014 as the flag-off of our political activities and declaration, which comes exactly six months to the election on August 9, 2014, is divine. We are a prepared student, who’s ready for an examination. With INEC’s release of the timetable, we will now double our efforts. Iyiola, like his name implies, will bring ‘Iyi’ which means honour to Osun State. We appeal to the APC to ensure peace and allow the votes of the people to count in Osun.”

However, a former Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Fatai Akinbade, is being rooted for as the one man who could wrest power from the grip of the APC.  The list released by the PDP chairman naming the three aspirants on the platform of the party is a clear indication that Akinbade is no longer seeking to contest on the platform of the self-acclaimed “largest political party in Africa.” Akinbade, who is a former chairman of the PDP, has moved to the Labour Party but he is yet to announce this move publicly. The media consultant to the aspirant, Mr. Kayode Oladeji, said that Akinbade had joined the LP and would make it public very soon.

Oladeji said, “Though he is yet to do a formal declaration, Akinbade has left the Peoples Democratic Party for Labour Party. His movement to LP has caused some “dislocations” within the PDP and APC as those aggrieved within these parties, in addition to his teeming supporters cutting across all barriers in the state, have teamed up with him. Akinbade is the most adept grassroots politician among the contestants. He’s humble, religious, kind and level-headed.”

The LP has another aspirant in Mr. Niyi Owolade, who also served in the administration of Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola like Akinbade did. Criticising how Aregbesola changed the name of the state from Osun State to State of Osun, Owolade said that if the governor was right in doing so, his counterparts in other APC-led south-west states would have followed suit. He promised to change the name and also decried alleged borrowing by the Aregbesola administration. Owolade said, “Ours will not be an arrogant leadership where the head believes he knows everything. The concept of elementary, middle and high school should be scrapped. The identities of schools are being disparaged for economic gains and sanity must be brought back to our schools.”

The governorship aspirant of the Unity Party of Nigeria, Mr. Segun Akinwusi, is also confident of ousting Aregbesola. Akinwusi, a former Head of Service, has also not spared the policies of the incumbent government, describing it as anti-people. He said the UPN remained the only credible alternative to the two leading political parties in the state.

Analysts believe political office holders in the state and those enjoying government patronage may work for Aregbesola’s victory. Many say political office holders will work hard to avoid a repeat of how the Akande-led AD was sent packing by the PDP in 2003.

However, the PDP chairman, in an interview with our correspondent, said that the people of the state were tired of the ruling party, saying the job of sending Aregbesola packing would be much easier than what many had expected. Olaoluwa said, “We are calling for the removal of Osun INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Oloruntoyin Akeju, as ordered by a court ruling. We cannot trust him. We know that INEC Chairman, Prof Attahiru Jega, has good intention; we want him to heed the court ruling by removing Akeju. The PDP is sure of defeating Aregbesola. Who will vote for them? Are you saying those whose houses and shops were demolished without any compensation or alternative markets to trade will vote for them to continue?”

But Chairman of the APC in the state, Mr. Adelowo Adebiyi, waved aside the threats from the opposition parties and predicted that his party would record a landslide victory in the election. He said that the current administration had done a lot and the people were appreciative of this. Speaking on the possibility of Omisore facing Aregbesola in the election, the APC chairman said it would be an easy ride for Aregbesola.

He said, “Senator Iyiola Omisore is not a threat to us; this is no bragging. In fact, he is not in the contest. None of them can pose any threat to Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola. On what premise is he seeking to be governor? Based on non-performance, violence, problems or what? He told some people that he has acquired a PhD; does that make him an honest and better administrator than Governor Rauf Aregbesola? In what ways has Osun profited from his PhD? If he has acquired a PhD, let him go to Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife, and start lecturing there.

“We thank God for what he has done in Osun in the last three years and all these things are there for people to see. We have changed the orientation of the people of the State of Osun, you can see O’ School, O’ Meal, O’ Road, O’ Tour and many more. The concept of Omoluabi is in place, there’s no political violence in Osun anymore. We want to appreciate the people of Osun for giving us the opportunity to serve.”