Posted September 27, 2012 by Emmanuel Bello in Politics

Oyo 2015 guber race: The verbal war between blood brothers

By BAYO AKAMO –
FOR the duo of Governor Abiola Ajimobi and the immediate past Senate Leader, Senator Teslim Kolawole Folarin, things seem to have fallen apart considering the on going verbal war between them. To many political observers, the political romance between Folarin and Ajibola despite not being in the same political parties could best be said to be short lived considering the commitment of the former to the emergence of the latter as the governor of Oyo state, particularly at the tail end of his declaration as the overall winner of the April 21 governorship election.
It is on record that Senator Folarin like many other non Action Congress of Nigeria political bigwigs in the state that stood solidly behind Ajimobi in the crucial leg of the ‘’Akala must go’’ at all cost days were compensated with juicy slots in the present cabinet of Ajimobi, with Senator Folarin being compensated with his own share of highly placed political appointees .
As the adage goes in politics, there can never be permanent enemy but permanent interest, months after the emergence of Governor Ajimobi, the political calculations changed with the pendulum swinging towards the possibility of showing interest in the 2015 governorship slot which the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), realized the need to regroup for the big political task ahead by tentatively penciling down of an Ibadan person for the governorship seat with all eyes on Senator Folarin as the best PDP joker for the race to Agodi Government House presently being occupied by the ACN administration .
The sudden but sharp political enmity between Senator Folarin and Ajimobi became glaring when the the former featured on a personality interview aired on a radio station based in Ibadan , during which he said the administration of Ajimobi lack human face, while berating the style of the administration Folarin said it was unlike that of a democratically elected government, pointing out that it was immoral for an elected administration like that of Governor Ajimobi to embark on programmes or moves capable of inflicting hardship on the masses, particularly the continuous displacement of market men and women in some areas in Ibadan under the guise of beautification.
As far as Senator Folarin was concerned has failed completely in addressing the needs of the people of the state but only devotes his attention to programmes and ideas that are of no value to the masses. vowing that with the situation on ground will win in the coming elections and chase out the ruling. But alas, the former Senate Leader received more condemnation he could ever think of as foot soldiers of Governor Ajimobi in the Action Congress of Nigeria descended heavily on Senator Folarin for daring to condemn his Uncle’s style of governance
ACN in statement issued by its Oyo state Publicity Secretary, Dauda Kolawole, wasted no time in describing ‘Senator Folarin, ‘’as a good example of what a public official must not be’’. emphasizing that the former Senate Leader lacked the moral right to condemn the present administration in the state for whatever basis. The likes of Senator Folarin and the politics of compromise that his party, the PDP, foisted on Oyo State for eight years cannot be continued by any sane administration that had in mind the transformation of the state. There is no way Senator Folarin would not see anything wrong in the ongoing reform in the state civil service and the aesthetics that the state is beginning to have. Until he parted ways with Adebayo Alao-Akala, they were both co-travellers in the rot boat of Oyo State , in consonance with the late self-styled Strongman of Ibadan politics, Chief Lamidi Adedibu. Both literally and metaphorically, they dirtied our state; they can never be happy with anyone who is fumigating their smelly past,” the party added.
ACN in a stout defence of its own Governor Ajimobi wondered ‘’why any rational person would be against a reform system that seeks to purge its ranks of those that had dragged down the hands of the state’s clock for decades, with the aim of replacing them with young vibrant graduates who roam the streets jobless,’’ adding the eight-year of Senator Folarin at the National Assembly amount to total waste for his constituents, and that the former Senate Leader would be too ashamed to contribute to any developmental issues in society.
“Senator Folarin’s eight years in the Senate as Leader was the quintessential years of the locusts. You will recall that Senator Abubakar Olusola Saraki occupied same post in the Senate between 1979 and 1983. He was not known to have held any other elective national office but his leadership of the Senate, due to his robust contributions to his Kwara constituency, turned him into a folk hero till today in Kwara. Senator Folarin performed so woefully in eight years that he cannot pinpoint a single development project he brought to Oyo Central Senatorial district, not to talk of Oyo State . What Ajimobi is doing in the beautification of Oyo can be likened to the proverbial pain that accompanies traditional incision of tribal marks on a child. When the incision is done, it becomes an attraction of beauty. Only those who have sold their hearts to dirt and rot will see anything wrong in the government’s quest for us to move forward,” .it noted.
“Why would a man who cannot point to a tangible project as achievement when he was the number five citizen of the country come out openly to criticize a performing government.He occupied the same position the incumbent governor, Senator. Ajimobi used to transform the lives of his constituents. At least, if the people were not important to him, what did he do for Ibadan where he is a high chief? For record purpose, Senator Folarin who claimed to be a political scientist wasted eight years as a Senator without accountability. He, alongside his party man and former governor, Otunba Alao-Akala after squandering the collective resources of the state through their Molete godfather, almost turned the state into a theater of war. Comparatively, most of us at the state assembly have tried our best as lawmaker more than the locust years of Senator Folarin. The road to his house was tarred by the incumbent government while the people of the eleven (11) local governments in his senatorial district can never be proud of him because instead of bringing succour to them, he elevated their problems before the present regime came on board to rescue them”, ’the party added.
ACN challenged the former Senate leader not to overate himself in the Oyo state politics by rather keeping ‘’silent politically for the next 50 years as the people will continue to reject him at the poll,’’ emphasizing that should Senator Folarin think otherwise, he should be bold enough to test his popularity by going round the city of Ibadan his hometown and see if he would not be stoned.
With the verbal war between the two blood brothers ,it is glaring that the 2015 governorship tussle in Oyo state is without doubt going to be much more interesting considering the political saying in Ibadan that ‘’Ibadan kii sin enikan leemeji’, which literally means, Ibadan does not serve any governor twice. But political observers in the state are still of the view that events in the months ahead would clearly be the major determinant factors.