Osun Defender Online Version of May 05, 2023

Repositioning C’ttee: Oyetola Still Toeing The Wrong Path – Salinsile

the first level of leaders of the APC will meet, follow by the second level leaders who will summon the general stakeholders and then members of the party.

“To pave way for genuine reconcilia on; all those the leaders will have to meet first. When the first level leaders have met, they would design how they will do it. They will call the second level leaders and then the general stakeholders of the party. The acknowledged leaders of the party would have to meet first.

there was almost no party a er the 2003 governorship disaster where Chief Bisi Akande lost to the PDP and everybody deserted the party.

“Aregbesola came and reorganised the party. Gradually, people came back to the progressives folds. Since then, people have never le him. So, if they want to do anything in this state that has to do with poli cs and people and you say Aregbesola does not ma er, you are only was ng your me.

•Continued from Page 1

“I wouldn’t know where two groups will have differences and you call one group, especially, your own group that you want to do restructuring.

“Oyetola is toeing the wrong path and that is how he destroyed the party in the first instance. A situaon whereby a leader of the party will be playing poli cs of division, saying he doesn’t want to see a set of people. He is a failure.

“He is planning another failure now. He has thrown our party into confusion. He has relegated our party. The party that we suffered to build over years.

“I believe with the tragedy of the last elec ons, he ought to have learnt his lesson. I thought he would be magnanimous enough to have appealed to the people. Even if he could not do it directly, he should have sent emissaries.

“You want to reposion a party you destroyed with poli cs of division, you want to reconcile members and you are doing it in your own house and not the party secretariat. It is just an IleriOluwa affairs, not APC ma er.”

Asked if he would honour invita on or submit memorandum to the commi ee, Salinsile said he could not give credibility to the commi ee by featuring in any of its ac vi es.

He said: “Reposi oning and reconcilia on were what we are calling for when we formed The Osun Progressives (TOP) and I was the chairman of the APC of our tendency. We wrote 15 good le ers to the Na onal Secretariat; but we never got any reply.

“That me, we were trying to bring in the party at the na onal level to come and reconcile us so that

the tragedy of July 16, 2023 will not happen but they refused simply because Oyetola was part of them and now you are saying you want to reposi on and reconcile people and you only called your own people to

do that. That would not work.

“I am sure the committee won’t come to me for memorandum because up ll now, they don’t see our group as part of APC and unfortunately, we are the

original APC members. Majority of those who are now in the other side, star ng from the Chairman of the so called commi ee met us in the party.”

To pave way for genuine reconcilia on, Salinsile said

Osun NYSC Seeks Govt. Intervention

In Renovating Orientation Camp

Kazeem Badmus

THE Na onal Youth Service Corps, State of Osun, has appealed to the state government to help in the renova on of the scheme’s Permanent Orienta on camp in Ede.

The NYSC also urged Governor Ademola Adeleke to resuscitate the State Honours Award for outstanding corps members.

According to a post on the official Facebook page of Osun NYSC, the state Coordinator, Mr Agbor Obim, made the appeal when he led officials of the scheme to pay a courtesy visit to the governor at the Bola Ige House, Osogbo, on Tuesday.

According to Obim, most of the buildings in the orienta on camp are in bad shape and needed renova on, urging the governor to help in fixing it.

“Most of the buildings within the camp require renova ons. We want to appeal to you to help us with the renova on.

“We also need your assistance with the welfare and feed-

ing augmenta on during Orienta on Course for the teeming number of Prospec ve Corps Members deployed to the State”, said Obim.

He added: “A special aspect of the NYSC Scheme that recognises Corps Members who have made outstanding contribu ons to their host communi es is the State Honor award but it has not been ac ve and needed resuscita on.

“Without the award system, there is no way for outstanding Corps Members to be nominated

for the Presiden al Award.

“There is also the need for the support of our Corps Members Community Development Service (CDS) projects.” In his response, Adeleke assured the NYSC team of his administra on’s readiness at ensuring that the scheme’s culture and values are sustained.

The Governor said: “We will take a look at your requests and we will surely do something about it. The orienta on camp will take a new look very soon”.

“Let me come out clearly, any reposi oning and reconcilia on that does not involve Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is an exercise in fulity; it is a waste of me. It will never fly. Because it was Aregbesola that organised people and party when

“I’m sure when genuine reconcilia on come up, people at the helms of affair at the na onal level will invite all of them and from there on, there will be a real reorganisa on and genuine reconcilia on. Without that, forget it.”

Attend To Our Plight, Sacked Teachers Beg Adeleke

Kazeem Badmus

THE 1500 newly recruited teachers sacked by Governor Ademola Adeleke of the State of Osun have appealed to the Governor to a end to their plight and reinstate them back into service.

The sacked teachers appealed to Adeleke while par cipa ng in this year’s Workers’ Day celebra on held at the Osogbo township stadium on Monday.

It would be recalled that Adeleke sacked the teachers who were recruited by his predecessor, Adegboyega Oyetola a er losing the July 16 governorship elec on.

The sacked teachers who carried a banner while performing their march past, said they were hopeful of join-

ing the State workforce soon.

Some of the inscripons on the banner are:

“Forum of 1500 Newly Recruited Teachers In Osun State felicitate with Our Dear Governor and Osun State Workers on this occasion of 2023 Workers’ Day.

“We are very hopeful to join you soon. Our dear Governor, please a end to our plight.

“The journey of over two years isn’t a child’s play. Moving Osun State forward is our priority”.

Meanwhile, Adeleke has assured that his administra on would focus on workers’ welfare, saying a happy public service translates into a booming local economy across the state.

Adeleke said: “Dear comrades, our administra on is focusing on workers’ welfare because that is the right thing to do. There is a strong link between the formal and informal workforce in Osun state.

“When the formal workforce, the public servants are cared for, the informal sector fairs be er. A very happy public service translates into a booming local economy across the state.

“To address poverty and underdevelopment, the first place to start is the posi ve treatment of public workers. Their salaries and allowances fuel prosperity within the local economy.”

•Deputy Editor, Osun Defender Newspaper, Ismaeel Uthman presenting copies of the paper to members of Osun G-21 during their courtesy visit to the medium on Monday.

Photo Shola Aderinto.

•Governor Ademola Adeleke with the Osun NYSC Officials

HAPPY workers day? Many workers living in four months ago in Nigeria had very if anything to be happy about last Monday the first day of May which was as always declared a public holiday to mark Workers Day.

With mass poverty and discontent, the incoming administra on has its work out. There must be a wholesome reworking of the opera ons and ethos of industrial rela ons in Nigeria. With one hundred and thirty-three million trapped in mul -dimensional poverty, a review is urgent for the produc vity and compeveness of the economy is bedrocked on the efficacy of the industrial rela ons as for example Germany and the Scandinavian countries have admirably demonstrated.

All par es - government, employers, labour have not helped ma ers. Inadvertently, (it is to be hoped) they bear interwoven responsibility for the crea on of a low-skills, low-wage economy; such a framework will never be compe -

•Incoming government should revamp industrial relations

“The syndrome is a threat to the prospects of the economy and must be confronted; to do so, we must accept that talent migrates to where it is appreciated, recognised and rewarded. Our low skills, low wage format is fueling the exodus and it must be counteracted” targets and by extension long-term planning. It is the only format through which a fight against poverty can be launched and a job crea ng sustainable economy ensured. We must move away from strife, confronta on and the mouthing of pla tudes.

ve in today’s condi on.

In the new dispensa on, the country must work out a na onal democra c agreement amongst all par-

es and interest groups to ditch industrial rela ons based on strife and aggression with a new framework based on coopera on, fixed

Should Not Be Just Another Workers Day Tragedy And Farce Interwoven

IN his latest flight from reality, the former governor of the State of Osun has declared Hus bizarre inten on to “reposi on” the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state. This is as preposterous as it gets! Having destroyed a very vibrant progressive movement, he now wants to reposi on it. It cannot get more ridiculous.

Oyetola is not a progressive and knows next to nothing about party management. The results of the presiden al and legisla-

“Oyetola should allow those who built a progressive movement to take over the party and restructure it back into a formidable all conquering force for change. As they have demonstrated at every opportunity, the people of Osun have had enough of the comic interlude, Oyetola blew a great opportunity, he should exit the stage and allow a proper rebuilding of the party to be done”

ve elec ons tes fy to this. How a man who gi ed over twenty seats to the opposi on can now be talking about reposi oning is beyond comprehension.

Emo onally stunted Oyetola cannot induce the spirit of accommoda on and expansiveness necessary to create a “Big Tent’, and this is exactly what has to be done if the progressive camp in Osun is to be revived.

Lacking a sense of retrospecon, Oyetola has set up a commi ee of his chosen court jesters to presumably revive the party. Only the delusional can believe that people who cannot deliver their polling units can reposi on a party.

Oyetola should allow those who built a progressive movement to take over the party and restructure it back into a formi-

dable all conquering force for change. As they have demonstrated at every opportunity, the people of Osun have had enough of the comic interlude, Oyetola blew a great opportunity, he should exit the stage and allow a proper rebuilding of the party to be done.

It is also an essen al ingredient in the move away from consump on to produc on. It will also be necessary if we are to keep talent at home and stop the “deskilling’ of the economy otherwise referred to as the ‘japa syndrome”. The syndrome is a threat to the prospects of the economy and must be confronted; to do so, we must accept that talent migrates to where it is appreciated, recognised and rewarded. Our low skills, low wage format is fueling the exodus and it must be counteracted.

OSUN DEFENDER

Publisher – Moremi Publishing House Ltd.

Deputy

Produc

Reporter – Yusuf Oketola

Reporter – Kazeem Badmus

Photo

A more effec ve model of industrial rela ons will be based on coopera on and the acceptance that a revamped Central Bank must s ck to its core func on of price stability. Macroeconomic stability is the only way to a ain social jusce, protect living standards and guarantee access to social services as well infla on adjusted pensions.

State of Osun

ISSN : 0794-8050

Telephone : 0809-301-9152

Website : www.osundefender.com/index.php

e-mail : osundefender@yahoo.com osundefenderbank@gmail.com

All correspondence to the above email addresses.

A new government on May 29th must ensure a new a tude to industrial rela ons. It is essen al to the na on’s economic survival.

Parents Withdraw Children From School Over Poor Infrastructure, Lack Of Teachers

Yusuf Oketola

LACK of infrastructure has con nued to be a major concern in some public secondary schools in the State of Osun, especially in the rural and semiurban areas.

In spite of new buildings being constructed in some public schools in the State by successive administra ons, OSUN DEFENDER noted that hundreds of schools are in dire need of befi ng infrastructure and conducive learning environment.

Lack of school buildings and enough teachers are the major challenges facing public educa on in the state, findings by the medium has revealed.

These challenges, as noted by the medium, has induced students migra on and withdrawal from some of the affected schools.

Among hundreds of schools begging for government urgent a en on is Local Authority (LA) Grammar School, Ipetumodu, Ife North Local Government of the State.

It started as a mod-

•Old Students Beg Govt. For Urgent Intervention

ern school but was later converted to a secondary school on March 1, 1977 by the military administraon of Old Oyo State. The school was originally serv-

ing seven communi es; Yakoko, Ipetumodu, Moro, Edunabon, Sekona, Eleweran, Asipa.

The school, as observed by OSUN DEFENDER, was

currently in bad shape as most of its buildings were dilapidated. Out of nine blocks of 31 classrooms, only three classrooms were par ally in good condi on.

The three classrooms have less than 50 chairs and table for the use of over 250 students.

The school workshop, science laboratory, corps member’s lodge and examina on hall were overgrown with weeds. The principal’s office was not in good condi on as well. The school does not also have toilet facili es.

Besides, the school was also lacking enough teachers. As of the me of writing this report yesterday, the school did not have Physics and Chemistry teachers and other science related subjects.

According to some of the teachers of the school, parents have been withdrawing the children from the school due to the absence of teachers and poor infrastructure.

Mr. Isaac Adebayo, a father of a former student of the school said he withdrew her daughter because of the absence of infrastructure and teacher.

Oyetola’s Attitude To Workers Led To His Defeat - Fmr. NULGE Chairman

Yusuf Oketola

Aformer Chairman of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Osun Chapter, Kenneth Tinubu has disclosed that the nonchalant a tude of former governor Adegboyega Oyetola led to his defeat at the July 16, 2022 governorship elec on.

Tinubu, who berated the Oyetola’s administraon for being insensi ve to workers plight boasted that “in a civil service state like Osun, civil servants can influence the outcome of an elec on”.

He made this known while featuring on a Workers’ Day special edi on on a radio current affairs programme in Osogbo on Monday.

According to him, “The nonchalant a tude of the past government caused their downfall.

“They believed that the workers have nothing to offer and the workers showed them that they are ready to support any government that is ready to support them.

“Eighty percent of workers voted against the last government.”

Tinubu also said the promises made by Governor Ademola Adeleke to civil servants was the reason they voted for him at the elec on.

“When he (Adeleke) wanted to come in, we held a mee ng with him

and he made promises to us. That was why the people voted for him.

“The workers can influence the result of an elec on, especially in

a civil service state and that is what happened in Osun,” he added.

Why Africans Need To Write Their Own History — Ooni Of Ife

Yusuf Oketola

THE Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi has said it is me for Africans to begin to write the history of their race and people to correct some erroneous impressions created about them, as well as the distor on of historical facts by some foreign writers.

According the monarch, the step also become necessary to put an end to the ac vi es of persons who are deliberately turning the facts upside down as regard history of the black race.

Ooni spoke in Lagos on Tuesday at the launch of a book, “Ile-Ife: Cradle of the world,” wri en by Dr Maureen Tamuno, Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Jamaica and Belize.

The monarch said: “The idea to write the book is not mine, it is that of Dr Maureen Tamuno and I only gave my blessing and support.

“Works like this one are necessary to correct many errors being peddled about the black race. For instance, some people who have only got one dynasty are claiming to be older than Ile-Ife, which has three dynas es and is thousands of years old.

“I am fulfilled and thankful to God for this

project and book wri en by an Okrika princess who understands and values the importance of Ife to the black race and the world in general.

“She is dogged and a goal-ge er and went about to get a number of scholars and academics to commit to the project. Efforts like this one are to make our society be er.”

Speaking, the Jamaican High Commissioner to Nigeria, Esmond Reid, opined that only the black people are in the posi on to tell their stories be er.

“Black people, wherever they are, know that Africa is home. Nigeria and Jamaica have many things in common and efforts are being made to further connect the black people in the Diaspora with the Motherland.

“We should also rise up to stop those giving false narra ves about our history by wri ng our history ourselves,” he said.

On what prompted her to write the book, the author, Tamuno said: “Upon my appointment as an ambassador, I did some research and found some linkages between Ile-Ife and the Caribbean and black people in the Diaspora.

“I had to go to Ife to

meet the Ooni and I was warmly welcomed. It was like I have been there before and as an Okrika princess, I am not a stranger to royalty.

“I resumed at my duty post at the peak of COVID19 pandemic and some Jamaicans came to me saying they wanted to learn the Yoruba Language.

“I couldn’t speak it myself but I was lucky to get a volunteer who taught them for about 180 days.

“I thought that was all un l I saw people trooping in from Dominican Republic, Hai and other places saying they have traced their roots and found out that they came from Yorubaland.

“I have had pleasant experiences from people from Cuba, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago affirming that Ife is the cradle of civiliza on.”

The reviewer, Prof. Siyan Oyeweso, said the book was the first coffee book on a city in the South-West of Nigeria and challenged others to write theirs too.

He stated that the importance of Ile-Ife to Yoruba culture cannot be overemphasised, adding that an interna onal conference on the ancient town has been scheduled for October this year.

who want a be er future for their children have also been withdrawing them from the school, you can ask the teachers.”

Speaking with OSUN DEFENDER, President of the Old Students Associaon of the school, Pastor Kola Odesanmi, said he was not happy with the condion of the school.

Odesanmi disclosed that efforts were ongoing by the graduates of the school to renovate some of the dilapidated classrooms and build new ones.

He said: “The present condi on of the school is disheartening. I was so confused when I got here to see the school I once a ended years back. Most of buildings are nearly collapsed.

“Of about 31 classrooms, only three are parally good. If you look at those three classrooms, the furniture there are not up to 50, while the students are over 250. How will they manage to learn?

“I could not con nue to see my daughter in a filthy environment. The school is no longer safe for her. There was no science teacher and she wants to be a medical doctor. We need to withdraw her to a private school”, said Adebayo.

Adebayo said other parents have also been withdrawing their children from the school, saying ‘I am not the only one, other parents

“They do not have good toilet facili es in this modern day. The Old Students Associa on has made efforts to renovate three classrooms. We assisted in the flooring and also bought mechanical grass cu er. Renova on of three classrooms is also ongoing.

“I also heard that there are no teachers for science subjects. We appeal to the state government to intervene by rebuilding the school and deploy more teachers. This is the future of our children. They should not jeopardize it”.

•One of the classrooms of the school

Political Scavengers Directing APC Affairs In Osun, Adewale, Ex-LG Chairman

Yusuf Oketola

HOW long have you been with the progressive party?

I joined ac ve poli cs in 1999 when Chief Bisi Akande was elected as the Governor

of the State of Osun under the Alliance for Democracy. I was the Secretary of the AD at my ward, Lagere Amola Ward 6, Ode-Omu. A er we lost the 2003 governorship elec on, the progressive party went into ex nc on in the state. In 2005, the resuscita on of the party began through Oranmiyan movement led by Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola. Things began to take shape in the party. I was s ll holding the secretary posion at my ward at that me. Members of the Ac on Alliance were very ac ve; we were inspired by Aregbesola. The 2007 elec on came, we won but our mandate was stolen. That dampened the moral of majority members of the progressive party. However, when Aregbesola reclaimed his mandate in 2010, things started falling into place. I was the Youth Captain of Oranmiyan at Ayedaade LG and s ll the Secretary of the party at my ward.

Towards the 2014 elec on, I became the Coordinator of Osun Progressive Force (OPF) in Ayedaade local government, while I was s ll the Youth Captain of Oranmiyan. I was recommended for the two posi ons by my poli cal leaders.

I am a local poli cian; I do my poli cs at home and I am loyal to the party and my leaders.

You were denied the caretaker chairmanship posi on in 2017, what was responsible for that?

What I know is that my name was penned down for the Caretaker Chairmanship posi on for Ayedaade local government in 2017 by my leaders, but it didn’t fly at the state level because of ‘state poli cs’. I don’t play my poli cs at the state level. That is what I can say.

However, I par cipated in the local government parliamentary elec on in 2018. I contested against the incumbent caretaker chairman of the local government then, Alhaji Oduwole Bashir, we are in the same ward. I defeated him at the elec on and I was elected as counselor for my ward, and eventually, luck ran on me and I became the local government chairman through the parliamentary system.

As a stakeholder of the APC in Osun West Senatorial District, were you part of the ‘West L’okan’ agitators in 2018?

I did not go with ‘West L’okan agitators’ because Aregbesola, who was the governor then directed all the local government chairmen to work for Oyetola. Our leaders in Osun West were calling us bastard for not suppor ng the agenda. We were even cursed at a senatorial mee ng in Iwo. On the day of the primary elec on, I called police to arrest my leader and ward chairman just because I wanted a field day to work for Oyetola’s emergence as the candidate of the party. My chairman mocked me when he heard about all what Oyetola did to us in office.

What do you think was responsible for the near-defeat of APC in the 2018 governorship elec on?

APC had a be er chance to win the 2018 elec on with wide margin but the choice of our candidate was the grievous mistake. The progressive party was s ll popular ll 2018. In 2017, there was a survey sponsored by Asiwaju Bola Tinubu on Osun APC. The survey revealed that Aregbesola was more popular than the party itself. Tinubu then directed that we start organising mee ng across the nine federal cons tuencies in the state. We erected billboard for the party across the state. I remembered that there was crisis at the Ifelodun/ Boripe/Odo-o n federal cons tuency mee ng then. As the programme was going on at Ikirun, most members of the APC from Osun East, West and Central said the governorship cket of the party should be zone to Osun West. Aregbesola was not even allowed to make a speech on that day. The APC members later changed their agita on from ‘West L’okan to Adeo l’okan. The outcome of our primary elec on was responsible for the near-defeat of the APC in 2018. APC was popular, but the choice of candidate haunted the party.

The crisis of the party began when the West felt cheated. If not for Aregbesola’s strategy and the love of the people for him, APC would have lost the 2018 elec on. Few months to the elec on, Aregbesola directed all local government chairmen to go back to their locali es to mobilise electorate and votes for the party and funded the project. It was during that elec on that I realised that elec on is mathema cs. If Ogbeni had not handle the elec on that way, we wouldn’t even have the chance to go for a rerun.

In spite of what you said, how did APC end up being a polarised party a er the 2018 elec on?

We campaigned with con nuity of the progressives government and noble programmes of Aregbesola’s administraon. We thought it would be a con nuity we campaigned with. But reverse was the case. What I observed was that immediately the baton of government changed, everything both in governance and poli cs changed with it.

The first Joint Account Alloca on Commi ee, JAAC mee ng we held under Oyetola was a tug of war. It was total departure from what we used to have under Aregbesola. A career officer, the Coordina ng Director of Ministry of Local Government then, Mr. Akinpelu told me openly that ‘support this Governor, Oyetola, he will not be chea ng you like Aregbesola, and he will be releasing your money every month.’ I was shocked to hear that from a career office, Oyetola was even close to us when he was saying it. But I didn’t take him serious because most of career officers are sycophan c; they befriend any government in power.

A er that was a sponsored division in ALGON. Some of us did not know that some ALGON members had ulterior mo ve. Those set of people who claimed to be loyal to the new governor, Oyetola as then was, accused the ALGON execu ves of misappropria on. We tried to let peace reign but the people who called themselves Tobalase were persistent. We did not know that their accusa on against the ALGON execu ve was because they wanted to change leadership that will play the sycophan c poli cs. Their belief then was that the ALGON execu ves would con nue to be loyal to Aregbesola.

Immediately we changed the ALGON execu ves, these people started what I will call needless poli cs of bi erness and division, all because they wanted to show Oyetola that they were loyal to him. I was their first vic m. My local government, Ayedaade, was receiving nega ve alloca on which was not the case under Aregbesola’s administra on. I observed the trend nega ve alloca on for over three months before I complained. I informed the ALGON Chairman then and he asked if I was suspicious. I told him I didn’t know what was happening. The chairman said he could not say anything on it; but he advised that I should meet the Commissioner for Local Government and Chie aincy Affairs, Mr. Adeleke Adebayo, popularly known as Banik. I met the commissioner at Ada; he asked of the poli cal group I belong to before becoming the local government Chairman and I told him I was the Youth Captain of Oranmiyan and Coordinator of Osun Progressive Force, OPF. Banik said those groups were the reason for receiving nega ve alloca on. He said the sponsors of the groups, Aregbesola and Senator Ajibola Basiru did not want Oyetola to become the governor. Basiru has not joined Oyetola camp then. That was 2019.

I told the commissioner that I didn’t know Aregbesola and Basiru in poli cs; I emerged as the Chairman from my local government through the party. Even the Coordinator of Ilerioluwa group in Ayedaade, Mr Soji Opawunmi is my personal leader. The commissioner told me to let my leader call him. I returned to Odeomu to meet my leader, Opawunmi and I narrated everything to him. He did not even know who Banik was, he collected his number and called him. He told him the party in our local government chose me as the local government chairman and not Aregbesola. He warned Banik not to tagged me to any leader in the state and not to cause disunity in the party.

A er the phone call, Banik told me to see him the following day in his office and he advised on what to do a er mee ng him. The following alloca on a er that was posive; we had li le change in the local government account. I realised that Banik was not working for the progress of the party. Any me alloca on dropped for my local government, he would call my Council Manager and instructed him not to allow me pay impress. He wouldn’t know the Council Manager was with me. There was a me I confronted him; I told him we are both poli cian, we should be each other’s keeper. I asked why he would be frustra ng me through career officials but he denied everything.

Another incident of bi er poli cs which the poli cal sycophants used to destroy APC in the state was during the lockdown period in 2020. The Chairman of APC in my local government requested that I lead him and others to a meeting with my official car to avoid being disturbed by security opera ves. On ge ng to the venue of the mee ng at Agunbelewo, Osogbo, the Chairman of the chairmen of the party, Mr. Awo doye said to my chairman, “Rahman Morounkeji,

why did you come here with Lateef; you know he’s a loyalist of Aregbesola. If you forward his name as the chairman of your local government for second term, it will not fly because we know him to be a core loyalist of Aregbesola.” I was speechless.

A er the mee ng, my chairman asked Awo doye to connect me to the right camp in the party and government. He then told my chairman that I should go and join Tobalase, which was being led by JK from Irepodun then. I met JK the second day and I expressed my interest in joining Tobalase. To my surprise, JK said I should go and bring N1m to join the group. I asked him where to get the money when he knew the alloca on to my local government was nothing to write home about. He insisted that the N1m was a condi on for me to join the group. I called my local government party chairman a er that and he said I should leave them alone. I later inform Awo loye too and that’s the end of the story.

Some of us who were chairmen under Oyetola were treated like slaves. At the JAAC mee ng, no ma er how we sing-praised the Governor, he would not recognise us. Oyetola only listened to our colleagues who were Tobalase. Other local government chairmen who were maltreated included Kola Ajao, from Egbedore South LCDA, Mukaila Usman from Ede North LCDA, Sikiru Adewale from Ede South LCDA, Sekona, Orosanya from Ife North.

There was a me myself, Ajao and Orosanya wanted to travel to Sweden for a seminar on invita on. We needed the state government to give us le er to the embassy. The Secretary to the State Government, Prince Wole Oyebamiji, refused to give us le er. He said we were not part of tobalase, that we are Aregbesola loyalists.

You claimed some mes ago that Oyetola did not release your severance package, how true is that?

That is a very terrible experience. Those of us who Oyetola inherited as local government chairmen suffered under his administra on. May God not let us have the type of Oyetola in government and poli cs again in Osun. The severance package was our en tlement a er leaving office. Oyetola indeed invited us to the banquet hall of Government House and promised to do the needful. Each chairman was en tled to N5million. To our surprise, Oyetola reduced it to N1.9m and s ll divided it into four for instalment payment. He paid the first batch, N470,000 a er four months that we le office. Those of us who were perceived as Aregbesola’s loyalists among the chairmen were not paid.

The second batch of another N470,000 was paid four months a er. Oyetola did not pay me un l my poli cal leaders in Ayedaade went to plead with him. You may find it difficult to believe this; we le office in February 2021 and •Continued on Page 7

•Adewale

Mr Abdullateef Adewale, a former Chairman of Ayedaade Local Government of the State of Osun, gives insight of how former governor Oyetola and some of his aides divided APC and subjected perceived loyalists of the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to inhuman treatment both in government and party. Excerpts:

Poor Remittance: Customers To Witness Prolong Power Outage Next Month - IBEDC

Yusuf Oketola

THE Ibadan Electricity Distribu on Company (IBEDC) has appealed to its customers in the State of Osun to pay their current and outstanding bills to forestall prolonged power outage.

IBEDC made the appeal in a no ce of power outage sent to its customers on Tuesday.

According to the company, power outage would be experienced from next month due to plans by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) to disconnect IBEDC from the na onal grid over poor remi ance.

The no ce reads:

“We regret to inform you that prolonged power outages will be experienced from next month due to plans by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) to disconnect IBEDC from the Na onal grid over poor remi ances.

“Therefore, we appeal to our esteemed customers to pay 100% of their current and

outstanding bills immediately, to enable IBEDC meet its financial obligaons to the value chain and avert the pending disconnec on”.

Speaking with OSUN DEFENDER, the Public Rela ons Officer of IBEDC, Osun region, Mrs. Kikelomo Owoeye said the company was losing a lot of revenue to those who are not paying their bills, adding that it has become

difficult to meet up with TCN requirements.

She said: “I just want to appeal to our customers to pay their current and outstanding bills. The money we are ge ng is not enough to cater for the power we are ge ng from TCN.

“There are lots of customers who have outstanding debts. Also, some have bypassed the meter, thereby turning into a loss of revenue

Akinrun Stool: We Are Not

Withdrawing From Race –Gboleru Ruling House

Yusuf Oketola

THE Gboleru Ruling House of Ikirun, headquarters of Ifelodun local government of the State of Osun, has cleared the air on rumour going around that it has withdrew from contes ng the Akinrun stool race.

The ruling house, in a statement signed by Prince Alimi Olaleye and Prince Lamidi Abefe on behalf of the family, noted that Gboleru family is not stepping down for anyone as being rumoured.

was made available to OSUN DEFENDER yesterday reads in part: “Atten on of Gboleru ruling house have been drawn to mischievous and false informa on being peddled around by some unscrupulous elements that Gboleru ruling house has withdrew from the race of Akirun throne.

for us. The situa on is not a child’s play and we have been given an ul matum that we must meet if we don’t want the power outages.

“The situa on is not in our hand. We can only appeal to our customers to help us in se ling their bills. If we don’t have enough revenue to pay for the power, the TCN will remove us from the naonal grid”.

Bisi Emerges Osun PDP Chair, As Adeleke Canvasses Support For New Exco

Sodiq Yusuf

THE Director-General of the Ademola Adeleke Campaign Organisa on, Hon. Sunday Bisi has emerged the new Chairman of the Peoples Democra c Party (PDP), in the State of Osun.

Bisi was elected at the State Congress of the party held at Osogbo Township Stadium, on Wednesday.

He takes over from Dr. Akindele Adekunle, who had been the Chairman of the Caretaker Commi ee of the PDP in Osun for over a year.

Governor Ademola Adeleke who was at the congress admonished the newly elected leaders to work for peace and unity of the party.

Adeleke said the party, under his leadership, will con nue to deliver the dividend of democracy to the people of the State, just as he urged all the elected officers to work in harmony for overall interest of the State.

In his acceptance speech, Bisi assured the

party faithful and supporters of all inclusiveness, saying everybody must work for progress and unity of the party.

He said: “I know what it takes to lead a party into government, I have done it before and I will do it again by the grace of God. I am going to unite the party more, everybody will be on the same page under my leadership.

“People are happy in

Osun State with what our governor is doing to the state, In less than four months they have seen changes, salaries, and arrears have been paid, and workers have been promoted. Infrastructure development is ongoing.

“When you have a united party, then the governor will be able to concentrate, and there won’t be any distracons, I will ensure that and bring everybody into the party so that we will be able to move the state forward.

“We know those that are behind those that are in court against this congress, I will only appeal to them to sheath their sword and come back to join us to move Osun state forward, those that went to court are not part of the success story of today.

“We had governorship, presiden al and state house of assembly, they did not par cipate. They are been used to draw us back. I appeal to them to join hands with us,” he stated.

They said Akinrun stool is their birth right which they cannot sell, insis ng that it is their turn to occupy the seat a er the demise of Oba Rauf Olawale Adedeji.

The statement which

“This is a blatant lie and members of the public should therefore disregard it. Akinrun throne is our birth rights and we cannot sell it. We are s ll very much in the race since it is our turn to present the next candidate to occupy the vacant stool.

“Our chance is very bright, because it is our turn to produce the next Akinrun.”

Police Parade twins, 3 Other Suspected Cultists For Alleged Murder

Atwin-brothers, Taiwo and Kehinde Adeleke and three other suspected cul sts have been arrested and paraded by the police in the State of Osun for alleged murder.

The suspects allegedly killed one Abiodun Apalara in Esa Oke area of the state.

The three other suspects are: Ibrahim Qudus (26), Ojo Ayobami (26), Ojo Oretu (24).

Spokesperson of the Police in the state, Mrs. Yemisi Opalola, said the suspects killed the vicm who was said to be a member of Alora confraternity during a fight.

According to Opalola, “On 27th April, 2023 at about 1400hrs, there was a fracas among some hoodlums suspected to be cul sts in Esa-Oke which led to the death of one male person later known to be one Abiodun Toyeeb Apalara.

“Immediately, the police team from the Special An -Cul sm unit swung into ac on and subsequently, the leader of the gang, one Ibrahim Qudus and addi onal four (4) suspects were arrested.

“Inves ga on mechanisms revealed that the late Abiodun Toyeeb Apalara ‘m’ was a member of Alora confraternity also known as Buccaneer and was killed by some armed hoodlums suspected to be members of Black Axe confraternity also known as Aye led by the first suspect.

“Exhibit recovered includes; one axe, one toyota corolla car with reg. no. AP 806 FC, ash colour, one Toyota muscle car with reg. no. SMK 182 GB, white colour, three iPhones and criminal charms

“The above two vehicles were used for the opera on of the dastard act. They will be charged to court a er the compleon of inves ga on.”

•Governor Adeleke raising the hand of the new Chairman of Osun PDP, Sunday Bisi

Kazeem Badmus

•L-R: Dr. Nureni Adeboye, AbdulAzeez Imam, a 200 Level Law student of Uniosun who is a beneficiary of the maiden Jare Adebisi-Balogun Annual Book Grant organised by Ilobu Concerned Citizens, (in memory of their deceased member, Barr. Adéjàre Adebisi), Alhaji Muhideen Adeleke, another beneficiary, Ajilogba Hameed, Ademola Oladosu, ICC Chairman; Prof Aderemi Ajala, ICC Scribe and a Prof. of Anthropology, UI, at the award ceremony held recently in Ilobu.

FG Commissions Comprehensive Healthcare Centre, Passport Front Desk Office In Osun, Oyo

Ismaeel Uthman

THE South-West has con nued to benefit from the reforms and interven on projects of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administra on on Nigeria Correc onal Service and Nigeria Immigra on Service.

Facilitated by the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the SouthWest is a beneficiary of both physical and social infrastructure needed in driving the reforms in the two services.

On Tuesday, May 2, the Federal Government commissioned a 20-bed hospital, equipment and genera ng plant at the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Ilesa, State of Osun and a Passport Front Desk Office in Oyo, Oyo State.

The healthcare centre, according to Aregbesola, is part of the COVID-19 Interven on Fund given to Correc onal Service, explaining that each geopoli cal zone of the country benefits from the comprehensive healthcare project.

Aregbesola who commissioned the project, restated President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitment to reposi on, resuscita on, reforma on and rehabilita on of inmates in all the custodial centres of the country.

The former governor of the State of Osun maintained that inmates are en tled to their full dignity, decent meals, medical treatment and humane accommoda on, adding that their rights should be protected and enhanced.

He appealed to state governments to take advantage of the new cons tu on amendment to ac vate speedy judicial process to take care of offenders, as well as providing the requisite infrastructure for state inmates, who cons tute the majority of inhabitants of custodial centres na onwide.

Aregbesola said: “The reform President Muhammadu Buhari-led Administra on introduced to correc onal services was designed to change the concep on of the penal system from the puni ve prison system to a correcon system that reforms and integrates convicted offenders back into society as part of civilised humanity.

“Inmates are seen as humans created in the image of God but who have made bad choices leading to their incarcera on.

“Nevertheless, their full dignity and rights should be protected and enhanced. They are entled to decent meals,

medical treatment and humane accommoda on, among others. The whole idea is to help them recover the best version of themselves and become who they were des ned to be, their past mistakes notwithstanding.

“But generally, the states must introduce judicial reforms that will make possible prompt dispensa on of jus ce and do away with long and o en indeterminate deten on which creates the deluge of awai ng trial inmates in the custodial centres.

“Many inmates have been in deten on for a period longer than the maximum sentence the offence they were alleged to have commi ed carries. This is miscarriage of jus ce and inexcusable. We cannot claim to be a just society when this happens to any of our ci zens.

“However, with our interven on, a regional mega facility with capacity for 3,000 inmates has been established in Ilesa. It is a village on its own, with courts and other infrastructure for a modern custodial centre.”

In his welcome address, the Controller General of Correc ons, Haliru Nababa, explained that the new set of infrastructure underpins the commitment of the President Muhammadu Buhari government in enhancing humane containment of persons in custody and reposi oning the correc onal service in line with standard global prac ce.

Nababa expressed gra tude to the President and the Minister for not sparing any effort in getng a be er deal for inmates across the country, through the birth of ideas that will further assist in engendering the success

of the current reforms.

We Have Overcome The Challenges In Obtaining Nigerian Passport - Aregbesola

Speaking at the commissioning of the Passport Front Desk Office in Oyo, Aregbesola said the Federal Government strident efforts at overcoming the challenges Nigerians encounter in obtaining passport are yielding the desired results.

Aregbesola urged cizens to assist the reform process at the Nigeria Immigra on Service (NIS) by not patronising corrupt officials who are making the process difficult for them.

He said the Oyo Passport Front Office is part of the long term ini a ves to make the process of data capturing, produc on and collec on which are cri cal areas of the passport process easier, all in a bid to address the growing concerns of Nigerians.

According to the minister, the NIS has con nued to meet up despite the skyrocke ng demand for the ci zenship affirming document, while maintaining the highest standard and quality.

He said: “The demand for passport by Nigerians has skyrocketed in the past three years. Nigeria has a growing popula on. This means that in the past 30 years, more people are being born than are dying. More people have there-

PUBLICATION

SHUTTI AHMED ALADE

That I was formerly known and addressed as SHUTTI AHMED ALADE, now wish to be known and addressed as SHUTTI AMIDU ALADE. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

fore grown to the age they will need the passport to travel outside the country, for iden fica on and for other purposes.

“All these shot up demand, more than our produc on capacity. But thankfully, we have addressed the challenge successfully and cleared the arrears. We are now producing on the schedule of six weeks a er biometric data enrollment for fresh applica ons and three weeks for renewal.

“But we s ll have the challenge of the wai ng period between applicaon and biometric data capture. Depending on the loca on, some mes, the wai ng period can take up to two months. This is because there is a limit to the number of applicants that the exis ng passport offices can a end to in a day, making it impossible to a end quickly to all the applicants, and necessita ng the long wai ng period.

“In spite of the challenges we faced, last year (2022) alone, we produced 1.9 million passports, against the 1 million produced in 2021. This is about 80 per cent

increase and it is unprecedented.

“The reform introduced to the NIS led to the Automated Passport issuance process which has eliminated touts and racketeers in Passport administra on, introduc on of E-border Management, MIDAS and the commencement of EPassport across Passport Control Offices and Diploma c Missions.”

Aregbesola also hinted that as part of the long term measures, the private sector will be engaged to provide lounges for a fee, with the equipment and personnel provided by the NIS to make the wai ng period a er applica on, more seamless.

“Ge ng the passport is a right of all Nigerians and for those outside the country, it is a necessity. The passport validates your person and existence and without it, you stand the risk of being classified as a stateless person outside the country.

“But our mandate is to provide the passport for all Nigerians desirous of it seamlessly, without any

stress. This is the essence of the ci zenship integrity mandate President Muhammadu Buhari gave us – that any Nigerian interfacing with the government in any area must not encounter any difficulty, but rather do their business joyously”, he added.”

On his part, the Governor of Oyo State, Engr. Seyi Makinde, who was represented at the event by his Special Adviser on Migra on and Homeland Security, ACG Segun Adegoke (Rtd.), stated that the state government will con nue to support the Nigeria Immigra on Service in the State.

“We thank the Minister for collabora ng with Oyo people in establishing this passport office of the Nigeria Immigra on Service here to complement the one in Ibadan. It will in no small way help facilitate legal migra on of our people.

“However, we (Oyo State Government) call on the Minister and Nigerian Immigra on Service to make haste in the domes ca on and eventual issuance of the African Union Passports to Nigerians. This will help facilitate the legal migraon of our people to the 54 African countries visa free and in turn promote much needed remi ances vis-avis foreign direct investment from other African na ons,” the governor stated.

Speaking earlier, the Ac ng Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigra on Service, NIS, DCG Abdulmumuni Haliru, said the newly inaugurated passport front office would boost social and economic ac vi es in the town.

Abdulmumuni, therefore, called on officers to be of good conduct and always be professional while discharging their civic responsibility.

He further extolled the person and character of the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, sta ng that the Immigra on Service has never had it this good.

Political Scavengers Directing The Affairs...

the salary of that month was not paid to us ll now. Oyetola didn’t pay all the local government chairmen and councilors ll now. That man is just too wicked. There was a me he asked us to calculate all the impress we were owed; we only collected 13 months impress out of 36 months. When we submitted the claims to Oyetola, he asked us to remove the impress we were owed under Aregbesola’s administraon, he said he was not part of the government. Then I knew we were in big problem. Incidentally, a er fol-

lowing his direc ve, Oyetola s ll had the quantum of impress to pay us.

I had a project in collabora on with CSDP on provision of electricity to some communi es in my local government. Oyetola frustrated the project.

What do you think is the solu on to the party crisis?

Members of the party can come together again. it is not that our party has lost its popularity. APC is s ll a party to beat, but it must be put in proper shape. Oyetola is who the people resent. People voted against Oyetola, not the APC, for his ac ons and inac ons. The people of

the state are aware of everything he was doing to Aregbesola and other people. Decision to make Oyetola the governor of the state began at the Oranmiyan House, but that’s where he came to a ack us.

To get APC together again, the opportunists, poli cal hustlers, sycophants, and usurpers should be excused, not from the party but from leadership posi on. The leadership of the party is the problem. Poli cal scavengers are the one direc ng the affairs of our party in Osun. Those who do not know the genesis of the party are the one taking shot.

•L-R: Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (middle), flanked by the Acting Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, DCG Abdulmumuni Haliru (left) and the Controller General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, NCoS, Haliru Nababa (right) at the commissioning of the newly built Passport Office of the Nigeria Immigration Service in Oyo on Tuesday 2nd May, 2023.

•Continued from Page 5

AT the jagged cliff of the colossal entrance to the temple of Delphi built by Phoebus Apollo, one of the greatest philosophers that had ever lived in Greece, around 5BC at Mount Parnassus, was this inscrip on “Man Know Thyself”

This precept had admonished the minds of many great philosophers who had followed the footsteps of the master philosopher, Pheobus Apollo. The wonder of this precept, more confounding as it were, has been the pivot around which every human endeavour has been shrouded. More o en than not, philosophers who were taught by Apollo and who came a er him have imbibed this precept and have taken a posi ve cue from the recurring value that consist in the precept.

Surrep ously, not many people who follow the precept ever know that it is a Grecian oracle which has a great and similar connota on with the Yoruba adage which says “Ran Omo eni iwo nse”. Remember the child of whom you are which literally is the same thing as “Man Know Thyself”. The corollary of this fact is apt and apparent, it delves into this history and exemplifies the value of recognising one’s personal consciousness as virtue. Nobody ever succeed in doing anything without searching whether what he is doing is acceptable to the people or not.

In our clime, whoever has failed to recognise that virtue is placed above all displays of la tude of disobedience in one’s character against decorum and orderliness, as a leader will always a ract cri cism, angst, uprising and imbroglio. A leader that does not want the followers to partake in the way they are being governed will always face the wrath of the people. It might come through various ways which could manifest through diverse indices of repulsive occurrences and in odious circumstances.

The poli cal approach of the immediate past governor of the State of Osun, Mr. Oyetola in his quest to reposi on Osun APC is alarming, at least every member needs to enquire whether the me is ripe or whether he has the capacity under the prevailing circumstances or through many factors we need to look at before he could do so. His poli cal intrigue and an cs which supposed to require scru ny in the hands of a panel of judges of the en re members of the facons in the APC in Osun also need to be demanded. In this dispensa on, we are not here to dig the feet of the emba led former governor considering so many ques ons begging for answers, but we need to let him know that in poli cs, to con nue to hold the posi on of power some parameters are supposed to be taken into cognizance. We believe the posi on is no longer an issue of” A la carte” or the issue of “Pla er of gold”. It will require condi ons. We, therefore demand the reason why an accused will connue to be a judge in his own case. We also consider this as an unwarranted maneuver of a desperate person. These are the submission of the people of Osun.

Overtly or covertly, people are saying

Oyetola’s Latest Folly

this because they need to join the issue with the publica on of “Daily Post” on Monday, April 30, 2023, by Francis Esediuno who was empha cally contacted to report that the immediate past governor was cons tu ng an 11-man commi ee to X-ray the ac vi es of the APC in recent me. The publica on also said that the commi ee was birthed by a series of mee ngs held between Oyetola and cri cal stakeholders within the party, including Igbimo Agba (Elders Councils)

From the opinion poll we have conducted, people are saying that they have never been furnished with informa on on whether there has been an acceptance of this development between the warring fac ons who they le behind before losing all the last elec ons. They opined that It has never been heard whether the warring fac ons in the APC have concluded any arrangement on reconcilia on. We do not know whether the Oyetola’s camp has listened to the condemna on of Baba Obasanjo about” “failure”. He said in one of his interviews that in the military “Nobody reinforces failure”, whenever there is a failure, it should be discarded with”. It has not been ascertained

STRIKER Striker

whether Oyetola has the right to call any mee ng of the APC in Osun as he’s simply an ordinary member, and at most a former one- me governor of the state. It has also been established that the Tinubu/She ma Campaign Council he led to defeat in Osun has been dissolved. There has not been another APC congress to warrant his leadership a er OYETOLA/APC TSUNAMI LOSS.

is

Members of the APC said in good authority that he is not the highest-ranking official of any government or party in Osun. The great number of people who rejected him at the poll are now ques oning why Oyetola is appropria ng leadership to himself by force. The people are calling the hierarchy of Oyetola’s fac on to begin to learn poli cs as the people of Osun have demanded in other to put an end to all their misinterpreta on of poli cs.

Poli cs is the set of ac vi es that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power rela ons among individuals in the same party, such as to achieve the distribu on of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies poli cs and government is referred to as poli cal science which recognizes leadership’s ability to carry all the people in their camp along to win an elec on and form a government without leaving any member behind. Poli cs is a poli cal system, that is a framework that defines acceptable polical methods within a society. The history of poli cal thought from Pheobus Apollo can also be traced back to early an quity, with seminal works such as Apollo’s scholars through Plato’s Republic, Aristotle’s Poli cs, and Confucius’s poli cal manuscripts.

There are also a variety of methods deployed in poli cs, which include promo ng one’s poli cal views among people, negoa ng with other poli cal subjects, making laws, and exercising internal and external force, including warfare against adversaries that are not in the same party. Poli cs is exercised on a wide range of social-political levels, from followers and leaders who champion the cause of winning for those in power. It is the demand of majority of APC members that Oyetola and those who lost their elec ons should queue again as it is customary of the progressive party behind those who have been winning to achieve fairness and equity in leadership that democracy is all about.

not the opinion of the Columnist featured above

For Goodness Sake

IN an earlier piece, we quoted W.B. Yeats’ observa ons in his epic poem, The Second Coming, that “the best lack all convic on, while the worst are full of passionate intensity,” and defined the Best (Good) and the Worst (Evil) thus: “The Good is easy to define: those content to do God’s will and obey His commandments - summarised in the Golden rule, which is the core preaching in all religion: do unto others as you would have them do unto you and do not unto others as you would not have them do to you. They are the Best. Evil is simply defined too: those who disagree with above, and would rather, like Lucifer their ancestor, pursue their selfish goals o en detrimental to the collec ve good. They are the Worst.”

Yeats’ damning observa on about the passivity of The Good is more succinctly captured by Einstein when he said “The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil but by those who watch them without doing anything.” It is a much direct wake up call for those who believe in redeeming human society and reconstruc ng it on the basis of the Golden Rule. Inac on is simply unacceptable, organisa on and ac on is it!

For Goodness’ sake, there are values that those who profess to want a be er world (and are keen to have it) must embrace; then there are the needful that they must pursue. Being merely good without intervening ac ons is what Yeats and Einstein condemned as com-

plicity and a recipe for having a world suffocating with man’s inhumanity to man.

Firstly, those who are Good must synchronise their words and ac ons. In today’s world, the gravest ill is the disparity between what we say and what we do; everyone says the right things while very few indeed do the right thing, giving birth to the saying “do as I say but not as I do.” The gulf between claims and deeds must be bridged with all deliberate passion such that the very life of Good people are a compelling and shining example for others to admire and follow, in their daily interac ons with all who come in contact with them. Love of neighbour, like Mar n Luther King said, must be prac cal and put into daily compelling ac ons. Majority of humanity are simply average people who will either swing this way or that way. To ensure a predominant swing towards goodness is the task of Captains of Good.

In Nigeria, just a casual glance at the lives of poli cal, tradi onal and religious leaders, socialites and celebri es reveal a woeful abyss between what they profess and their ac ons that have destruc ve impacts on society at large; Good people must recapture a tradi on of walking their talks in such impac ul ways that contribute to social redemp on.

Secondly, whereas individual goodness and heroism have their impacts, collec ve acons definitely deliver more. That is where acons within organisa ons become key. Every

social organisa on inevitably packs the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. All the Good people must come together within every organisaon first to become ascendant within it; then eventually create their own unifying organisaon that aggregate Goodness almost en rely, where Bad and Worse can hardly penetrate. Infiltra on into such an organisa on is not en rely ruled out as Evil too does not take a day off. However, the Code of Discipline and Rule for Sanc ons are such that infiltrators with corrup ng and undermining intents will sooner be found out and made a powerful deterrent example of.

Democracy, even when it is allowed to work perfectly, does not automa cally solve the issue of prosperity and then deliver a just and orderly society simply because the wishes of the majority have prevailed. The only jusce and benefit promised by democracy, at its best, is the triumph of the wishes of the majority. If the majority are “animals in human skin,” apology to Fela Anikulapo Ku , then what should we expect? The beauty of democracy is its weakness: that it assumed the majority are enlightened and upright enough to pick the very Best as its leaders. Humans are generally disposed to being humane and decent but it is the task of Good people, however corrup ng and evil the predominant system and the operators are, to organise themselves and deliver powerful examples of goodness as to compel the majority to see that a be er world is possible, and become a partner in the enterprise to achieve it. It is the way to go, for Goodness’ sake.

“It is the demand of majority of APC members that Oyetola and those who lost their elections should queue again as it is customary of the progressive party behind those who have been winning to achieve fairness and equity in leadership that democracy is all about”

•Need to rekindle not reposition the progressive thrust