Dapo Abiodun:

Adejoke Adeleye, Abeokuta

Governor Ibikunle Amosun is unyielding in his determination to ensure that his choice for Ogun State in the 2019 governorship election, Hon Adekunle Akinlade is put on the ballot as the candidate of All Progressives Congress, APC.

Towards this end, the Campaign Organisation of Prince (Dr) Dapo Abiodun whose name has already been submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC as the APC candidate for the Ogun governorship election said the Governor has asked two leading monarchs in the state – Oba Gbadebo Adedotun Micheal of Egbaland and Oba Kehinde Gbadewole Olugbenle, the Olu of Ilaro, to go to Abuja to plead with President Muhammadu Buhari to influence the replacement of the governorship candidate with Hon Akinlade.

Dapo Abiodun Campaign Organisation claimed in a press release issued by its Media Director, Emmanuel Ojo that the two monarchs were reportedly sited in Lagos in preparation for their journey to Abuja.

The release goes thus: “Our attention has been drawn to the latest political antics borne out of Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s relentless desperate move to upturn the overriding wish of all Ogun APC party members, who unanimously voted for Prince Dapo Abiodun as their gubernatorial candidate.

Governor Amosun has concluded plans to commission two highly revered Paramount Rulers from Ogun State to go and plead with President Buhari not to accept the candidature of Prince Dapo Abiodun, who is the validly elected candidate of the party.

Information has it that the Alake of Egbaland, HRM Oba M. A. Gbadebo and Olu of Ilaro, HRM Oba Kehinde Gbadewole Adeboye Olugbenle may have been successfully hoodwinked and placed on standby for this task. We have been reliably informed that the traditional Rulers who are presently in Lagos, in preparatory to leave for Abuja any moment from now, have been fed with all manners of unsubstantiated lies and falsehood by the governor.

Having failed with so many attempts geared towards legalizing illegality, including a botched attempt to get an ex parte order at the Federal High Court Abeokuta on Friday 19th October, it is quite unfortunate that Governor Amosun is using his position of authority to unduly influence and mobilize respected traditional leaders for such hatched job.

This act is capable of desecrating the symbol of peace and unity which our traditional leaders stands for and must be widely condemned by concerned citizens of Ogun State at home and abroad.

Our traditional leaders should not be dragged into this kind of murky politics which is heavily laden with ulterior and selfish motive being singlehandedly pursued by Governor Amosun, who is frantically and desperately looking for every possible means to upturn the final decision of party members in the state, and duly ratified by the NWC of our great party.

We all know that our dear president is a peace loving man whose integrity cannot be compromised. He will not upturn the mandate that had been freely given to Prince Dapo Abiodun by all members of Ogun APC, in a bid to satisfy the personal interest of Governor Amosun.

The general public is hereby put on notice, as we call on well-meaning citizens of Ogun State to kindly find out the real reason behind Mr Governor’s desperate moves to install Hon Akinlade at all cost.

It appears there is more to this than meet the eyes.

May the good God bless our dear state.