A group within the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South-West, Progressives Mandate, on Wednesday took on the Ogun State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, over his attacks on the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, describing as unwarranted and needless.
Governor Amosun had accused both Tinubu and Aremo Olusegun Osoba, who was former governor of Ogun State, of perpetrating fraud in the emergence of Prince Dapo Abiodun as APC governorship candidate in Ogun State for the 2019 election.
The group said this in a statement issued by its coordinator in Lagos, Hon Biyi Akintayo, wondering why Amosun would accuse Tinubu and Osoba, who were instrumental to his emergence in 2011 as Ogun governor, of fraud.
According to the group, accusing Tinubu and Osoba of perpetrating fraud in the emergence of Abiodun as APC governorship candidate in Ogun State, is either an act of deceit or forgetfulness on the part of the outgoing Governor Amosun.
“How will Amosun accuse Osoba and Tinubu of electoral fraud? Has Amosun suddenly forgotten that these were the duo that enabled his emergence in 2011? the group queried.
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Going down memory lane, the group said: “As new decampees into the now-defunct ACN, Sen Ibikunle Amosun and Hon. Abiodun Isiaq Akinlade were the star boys of the party in the build-up to the 2011 polls.
“When about seven other aspirants decided that they should jointly have a preferred candidate, held at Ikeja and chaired by Aare Remi Bakare with the likes of Dr. Kayode Soyinka, Prince Kayode Tejuoso, Mr Temitope Kuyebi, Gbenga Obadara and Hon. Abiodun Akinlade amongst others in attendance, Hon. Akinlade emerged and his name was to be forwarded to the leadership of the party the following week.
“Shockingly, before the name of Akinlade could be officially communicated to the leadership of the party in just less than a week, a meeting was summoned by Osoba, who is the leader of the party at a hotel in Abeokuta GRA, which is not far from the residence of Amosun.
“With the then chairman of the ACN, Alh. Tajudeen Bello and late Baba Adeniji presiding over the meeting alongside the Abuja stakeholders, the incumbent governor, Sen. Amosun, to the chagrin of other aspirants, was announced as the choice of the party hierarchy. After all the hues and cries, the other aggrieved aspirants agreed with the decision and moved on.
“Just about a week after the name of Sen. Amosun had been forwarded to INEC as ACN candidate, in his usual character of brigandage, Amosun left for CPC, but he swiftly showed up when the Guber ticket had been conceded to Hon. Akinlade.
“After pleading with the same Asiwaju Tinubu that he is deriding today, Baba Osoba was prevailed upon to forgive and give Amosun another chance and the rest remains history.
“In sum, it is on record that these duo of Osoba and Tinubu were conspicuously instrumental to his emergence as the governor of Ogun State. For the records, all these happened without Amosun going through any election. The question begging for an answer is, has Amosun forgotten so soon?
“One is not unaware of how Amosun begged his way to the Oke Mosan Governor’s office in 2011; he was even at the Owode-Yewa residence of Hon. Abiodun Akinlade to commend him for conceding the ticket to him in the build-up of the 2011 polls.”
“For Amosun to call on these duo agents of fraud as regards their silence on the emergence of Dapo Abiodun as APC candidate for 2019 polls, leaves more to be desired especially for the discerning minds in Ogun State,” the statement said.
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