A group
within the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South-West, Progressives
Mandate has berated the Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, over his attack
on the National Leader of the party, Senator Bola Tinubu.
A statement
issued on Wednesday by the coordinator of the group, Hon. Biyi Akintayo, stated
that Amosun’s outburst against Tinubu and a former governor of Ogun State,
Segun Osoba, was unwarranted.
On Monday,
Amosun while swearing in Mosunmola Dipeolu, Chief Judge of the state, at the
government house, Abeokuta, the state capital wondered why Tinubu and Osoba,
were silent on the controversy trailing the Ogun governorship primary.
Amosun
accused the leadership of the party of forging results of the primary election
in Lagos.
“He (the
president) knows that they just went to Lagos, write all results, and that what
they did is fraud. If the national working committee or the national chairman
said there was any election in Ogun state, it was all fraud,” Amosun said.
“The issue
of Chief Osoba and Asiwaju and co, what we said was that there was a deafening
silence from their end, and silence means consent.
“We have not
heard a word from any of them. Was there any election in Ogun state? Yes or No?
They should come out and speak… they are hiding behind one finger, they cannot
come out.”
But
according to the group, accusing the top cheiftains of perpetrating fraud in
the emergence of Prince Dapo Abiodun as APC governorship candidate in Ogun
State, despite the endorsement by the National Working Committee (NWC), was
unfortunate.
The
statement read: “How could Amosun accuse Osoba and Tinubu of electoral fraud?
Has Amosun suddenly forgotten that these were the duo that worked for his
emergence in 2011?
“As new
decampees into the now defunct ACN, Sen. Ibikunle Amosun and Hon. Abiodun Isiaq
Akinlade were the stars of the party in the build up to the 2011 polls.
“We recall
that seven other aspirants at that time decided to select a candidate. At a
meeting held at Ikeja and chaired by Aare Remi Bakare with the likes of Dr.
Kayode Soyinka, Prince Kayode Tejuoso, Mr. Temitope Kuyebi, Gbenga Obadara and
Hon. Akinlade among others in attendance, Akinlade emerged and his name was to
be forwarded to the leadership of the party the following week.
“Shockingly,
before his name could be officially communicated, a meeting was summoned by
Osoba, the leader of state chapter, at an hotel in Abeokuta GRA, close to
Amosun’s residence.
“With the
then chairman of the ACN, Alh. Tajudeen Bello and late Baba Adeniji presiding
over the meeting alongside the Abuja stakeholders, Amosun, was to the chagrin
of other aspirants announced as the choice of the party hierarchy. After all
the hues and cries, the other aggrieved aspirants agreed with the decision and
moved on.
“Just about
a week after the name of Sen. Amosun had been forwarded to INEC as ACN
candidate, Amosun left for CPC, but swiftly showed up when the guber ticket had
been conceded to Hon. Akinlade to beat the electoral body’s submission
deadline.
“After
pleading with the same Asiwaju Tinubu that he is deriding today, Baba Osoba was
prevailed upon to forgive Amosun and the rest is history.
“In sum, it
is on record that Osoba and Tinubu were conspicuously instrumental to his
emergence as the Governor of Ogun state. For the records, all these happened
without Amosun going through any election. The question begging for answer is,
has Amosun forgotten so soon?
“One is not
unaware of how Amosun begged his way to the Oke Mosan Governor’s office in
2011; he was even at the Owode-Yewa residence of Hon. Abiodun Akinlade to
commend him for conceding the ticket to him in the build-up of the 2011 polls.
“For Amosun
to call on these duo agent of fraud as regards their silence on the emergence
of Dapo Abiodun as APC candidate for 2019 polls, leaves more to desire
especially for the discerning minds in Ogun State,” the statement said.
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