Amosun, Osoba Battle for the Soul of APC in Ogun
Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, and a former governor of the state, Aremo Segun Osoba, have been at loggerheads over the control of the structures of All Progressives Congress in the state, writes Sheriff Balogun.
The running battle between Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, and a former governor of the state, Chief Segun Osoba, played out last week as activities towards the 2015 general elections hot up.
The duo had been harbouring their anger since 2011 elections when Osoba accused Amosun of not appointing his nominees as commissioners and special advisers while Amosun claimed that his loyalists were not given slots both at the Senate, House of Representatives and state assembly elections.
On the governor’s side, Amosun wanted to assemble a team he was sure would assist him in meeting his electoral promises while his party leader insisted he must pick his aides from within their ranks.
Despite that, the governor was said to have appointed several party men as special advisers and chairmen and members of boards of parastatals and agencies in the state.
The sore points of last elections from both players have resurfaced as the 2015 general elections approach. The issue has created a division in the party leading to clashes between both factions at events held in the state.
The rift between the duo was again manifested in the just-concluded local government and state congresses where their two factions held parallel congresses in the state to produce two executives to pilot the affairs of the party. The Chairman that emerged from the congress attended by party members loyal toAmosun is Alhaji Roqeeb Adeniji, while Chief Olu Agemo emerged as chairman from the congress held by the Osoba’s faction.
To an extent, the inauguration of the much-celebrated executives that emerged from Amosun’s camp during the congresses was postponed as Osoba’s faction kicked against the outcome of the congresses.
It would be recalled that the Osoba faction kicked against the proposed inauguration, saying the national headquarters of APC was yet to consider the report of the party’s Appeal Committee members that came to the state on 23rd April, 2014.
The faction said the national secretariat of APC did not have the rights to inaugurate the state chapter when its national convention had not been conducted.
But a statement issued by the Publicity Secretary-elect of Amosun’s faction, Mr. Sola Lawal, said the postponement of the inauguration followed “the decision of the national leadership of the party to hold the ceremonies in all the states where congresses had been successfully held at the same time.”
He said: “The APC secretariat informed the leadership of the party in the state that it has scheduled a meeting for May 13 in Abuja where all the states that are ready for inauguration of the executives at wards, local government areas and states will be determined and a date can then be fixed for the simultaneous inauguration ceremonies.
“The Ogun State APC had earlier announced that it would hold the inauguration ceremonies inside the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abeokuta. However, the arrangements for the inauguration ceremonies will now be put on hold until the national secretariat of the party fixes a date after its May 13 meeting in Abuja.”
The unending crisis thickens recently as Osoba who is the leader of the party in Ogun State finally returned to the state where he held a mega rally with his loyalists at his residence vowing to contest for the soul of the party.
Members of the National Assembly from the state who are at loggerheads with the governor over the 2015 election ticket attended the rally and said they were now ready for a battle against Amosun.
Loyalists of Osoba include the three senators from the state: Senator Gbenga Obadara (Ogun Central); Senator Gbenga Kaka (Ogun East) and Senator Akin Odunsi (Ogun West). Others are the Federal lawmakers from the state. Loyalists of Amosun include the commissioners, special advisers and board members of parastratals with the recent defected bigwigs from PDP, Chief Bode Mustapha and Mr. Odujirin.
Osoba while addressing party members said the battle on ground started in 2003, said, “they have started again, the agenda of 2003 is still very much alive, and the agenda of 2003 was to destroy, rubbish and finish Osoba politically and the same pattern, the same root is being followed.”
According to him, “I will now relocate to Abeokuta, I am going back to what I used to be. We will not destroy the government because we have to appreciate performance. I will come back to Abeokuta and I will operate the way I used to operate before.”
Speaking further, he said: “I just started new political engineering. The outcome of the meeting with national body of the party will determine our next step in the party”.
“I want to beg you to be united. I don’t want you to decamp to PDP, LP. We are moving nowhere under PDP or Labour under this circumstance. Now, we are progressing, we will continue to be progressive in our politics. I will not mislead you, I promise you I will now relocate to Abeokuta”, he added.
Not long after, the two camps then moved to Abuja for the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party to harmonise and as well settle the rift between the gladiators ahead of next elections in the state.
The NWC, however, pledged to establish an elders’ committee to resolve disputes in Ogun and other states with unresolved issues following the recently held congresses.
The NEC, decided to set up caretaker committees where the elders’ committee fails. Amosun was said to have walked out of the meeting following heated arguments between him and another NEC member over the credibility of the congresses conducted in Ogun State.
The governor was said to have become enraged when an ex-officio member of the NEC, who reportedly claimed to have monitored the congresses, described the congresses as kangaroo.
The governor has however described as white lies, the allegation that he stormed out of the meeting of the stakeholders held in Abuja.
While briefing APC leaders in the state on the outcome of the meeting, which had been widely reported, Amosun said he had great respect not only for the party, but for its state and national executive members.
He said: “I left the venue of the meeting after due permission from the interim National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande, who presided over the meeting.”
He said on arrival at the meeting, he told party chieftains that he had informed those present including the chairman, Akande that he would leave early because of preparations for the Investors’ Forum that was held in the state the following day.
He further told the gathering of elders who gathered at the “Mission to Rebuild “ Hall, Ibara Abeokuta that he left the venue with the permission of elders of the party, including Akande.
According to him, “I did not storm out as widely reported, rather I left the venue of the meeting after proper permission from the chairman of the meeting and others because of the Investors Forum billed for the following day.
“It will be wrong for anyone or group to say, write or insinuate that I stormed out of the meeting when I actually received the permission of our revered party chairman, Chief Bisi Akande.”
He told the APC stakeholders that he informed the national leadership of the party that he had done everything to carry along the state leader, Chief Osoba.
Amosun, however, said he pleaded with those present to ask Osoba what exactly he wanted from him because he had done everything humanly possible to carry him along in whatever his administration was doing adding Osoba could not respond to his question. He said he left the meeting thereafter after proper permission.
Just last week, Osoba gave a hint of the possibility of a mass defection of his loyalists to yet undisclosed political party, saying the crisis in the party has got to a point of no return. Addressing members of his party during the consultative forum, Osoba ruled out the possibility of working with Amosun and his faction.
The former governor, however, disclosed that members of his faction had reached an agreement and a consensus not to negotiate with anyone or group with regard to the ongoing crisis.
On this note, the former governor has directed his loyalists to commence compilation of a new members’ register in the 236 wards across the state.
He, however, warned his members not to allow themselves to be deceived by the antics of those pretending to be looking for a solution to the crisis in the APC in the state.
Osoba also decried the setting up of an elders’ committee to look into the crisis in the APC in the state, saying the current situation had gone beyond what such a body could handle.
(Source: ThisDay)
