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It was a glowing moment yesterday at the Oba Aromolaran Civic Centre in Ilesa, when the All Progressives Congress Reformation Forum in Ijesa south federal constituency welcomed and honoured seven of their distinguished sons who served in the national assembly, state assembly and cabinet of the former governor of the state, Adegboyega Oyetola, between 2019-2023.
A special recognition award was equally given to Oyetola in appreciation of his developmental strides in Ijesaland, particularly in the establishment of University of Ilesa, abolition of single-sex schools and reversal of other clumsy educational policy bequeathed to him by his predecessor.
The event, first of its kind in the area after the 2023 general elections, was a rendezvous where the future of the APC was charted dispassionately by leaders of thoughts across the federal constituency and beyond, including the apex leader of the party in the federal constituency, Chief Kunle Odeyemi.
In his address, the Osun State chairman of All Progressives Congress, Sooko Tajudeen Lawal, did not withhold his admiration for all the members of the party who stood by it against all odds in recent elections.
On the question bordering on gross-misconduct of some identified leaders of the party, Lawal said no member of the party involved in anti-party during the last governorship and general elections would be spared.
Lawal also urged genuine members of APC not to lose hope, noting that with hard work and commitment, the party would return to Abere, the seat of power, in 2026.
However, on a statement credited to the elders’ caucus of the party that the immediate past Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, should seek genuine forgiveness to find way back into the party, the state chairman said such an unsolicited counsel was not the position of APC in the state.
In his words, “I read what the Igbimo Agba of our party said but they are in the advisory role of the party. The party in no distant time will state its position on it.
” Meanwhile we must be clear about this: we are not restructuring the party. The party is intact in Osun under Baba Bisi Akande and Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola.
In his reaction, the immediate past Speaker of the Osun House of Assembly, who was also one of the distinguished awardees, the Rt. Hon. Timothy Owoeye, appreciated the organisers of the programme.
Owoeye used the occasion to sue for peace within the party, saying it would be easy for them to get back to power in Osun when there is unity.
Another awardee, who is the former Commissioner for Works and Transport in the state, Engineer Remi Omowaiye, said though politics is a game of number, so there is a need to bring all and sundry on board; he maintained that those involved in anti-party activities should be punished before they are reabsolved into their fold.
“We must not condone indiscipline. I am an advocate of ‘the more the merrier’, but it is important we send a message to the people so that next time, another set of people won’t engage in anti-party,” Omowaiye submitted.
The Chairman of the Planning Committee of the occasion, Hon. Lukman Abubakre shared the opinion of Omowaiye on why promoters of anti-party tendencies in the party should be punished to serve as deterent to others who might want to exercise such indiscretion in future.
Abubakre, who is also Chairman of Local Government Education Authority in Atakumosa East, counselled that a similar home-coming programme should be organised in other federal constituencies in the state to reward steadfastness of committed members of the party who served meritoriously.
According to him, “All the awardees were selected based on merit. We considered for awards all key elective and appointive political office holders from Ijesa south who served between 2019-2023. Only those with controversial record and those facing charges of anti-party activities were left out.”
The awardees include, the former federal lawmaker, Lawrence Ayeni and former SUBEB chairman in the state, Ajibola Famurewa.
Ex-chief of staff, Dr Charles Akinjide, former House of Assembly member, Babatunde Komolafe and former commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Adedayo Adewole, were also honoured at the event.
Only former minister of interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Taiwo Akeju ( former commissioner for political affairs), Segun Olanibi ( former commissioner for rural development) and Wale Adedoyin ( former house of assembly member for Ilesa West) were political office holders who served between 2019-2023 who did not make the honour list.
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