PDP will take over Ogun State in 2023 —Akinlade, Amosun’s ally

Ally of former governor of Ogun State, Adekunle Abdulkabir Akinlade, governorship candidate of Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in 2019 general election, recently defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) where he is now the running mate to PDP’s governorship candidate, Honourable Ladi Adebutu. He speaks to Assistant Editor DARE ADEKANMBI on why he took the decision and what to expect in 2023 elections in the state.

You were recently unveiled as the running mate to Hon Ladi Adebutu on the platform of the PDP, bringing an end to your membership of the APC. What actually informed this decision?

By the grace of God, I am today the deputy governorship candidate of the PDP in Ogun State. For those who understand the politics of Ogun State very well, they will realise that with all the happenings in our state today and the strategic position of the various zones of the state in terms of the data on where the votes came from in the 2019 elections, a majority of the votes came from Ogun Central followed by Ogun West and Ogun East. I came to the conclusion that since the incumbent governor has spent one term, myself and Honourable Ladi Adebutu are very clear on our common goal, which is to stop Governor Abiodun’s second term bid. And once two people have the same goal, it will be easy for them to collaborate and that is what it is. We both sat down and reviewed our position and came to the conclusion that we have the same goal and it was easy for us to make some compromise and make sacrifices among ourselves. So, I made up my mind to accept the offer to be his deputy. I am really proud of the opportunity I have today to be a running mate to such a great man with a big heart.

Some people would say you were hasty in your decision to dump APC, that you did not exhaust the internal mechanisms for conflict resolution before you left for PDP.

I don’t understand what you mean by conflict resolution. To be very clear, I won the 2018 guber primary, but it was manipulated by the Adams Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee then. We went to the APM and ran on that platform and I am convinced I won the election of 2019, but the results were rigged. We went up to the Supreme Court and after the judgment of the Supreme Court, we went back to APC in December 2019. Between then and May, 2022, nobody in APC deemed it fit to resolve the matter and I met with members of the current NWC of the party. So, I am not recognised in the party, like many other people who are aggrieved. The constitution of APC is very clear about joining and leaving the party. It means I can join and leave whenever I want. So, I did not have any conflict with anybody neither did I fight anybody there. We paid for delegates’ forms, got our tellers, but the entire delegates’ list was handed over to the incumbent, which was undemocratic. About five of us went for the primary and those in charge chose to score us zero, every single one of us except the incumbent. That showed how shallow the handlers of the primary were. Since that happened, the party never put my name in the committee for the convention. I ran for the highest state office of the governor of the state. So, there was no basis for any reconciliation as far as they were concerned and I did not have any issue with anybody. So, I came to the conclusion that I was not wanted in the party and I decided to make a choice. Politics is about interest. I, therefore, left APC and moved to the PDP.

In 2019, you wanted to be governor. But in 2013, you are playing a second fiddle in PDP as opposed to your aspiration to be the number one man in the state. Doesn’t this appear like a downgrade for you?

For me, politics is not an end, but a means to an end. For those who see politics as their means of livelihood, they might see it that way. But for me, it is all about service really. The reality in Ogun State today is that, for an Ogun West man to be governor and is running against somebody from Ogun East or Ogun Central, it is almost impossible for the person from West to win. For those of us from Ogun West, the best shot we have ever had was in 2019 when Senator Ibikunle Amosun gave us all the backing and we had the structure from ward to state levels before Oshiomhole did what he did. I am a political scientist and student of power. So, I came to the conclusion, looking at our situation in Ogun West, that for Ogun West, it is better for me to be half -way in if I want to be governor of Ogun State than to come from outside and say I want to be governor. That is why that decision was taken. I have to do what is necessary and what is smart. Politics is about being smart and not about being pride or ego-driven. You must look at things logically and you must take the necessary steps and when you see the opportunity, you must take it. As a political scientist, I have learnt that when the goal is to achieve balance of political power, you must be prepared to make compromises. I saw a great opportunity in PDP and I took it.

How much, in terms of political weight and numbers, are you and your team bringing to Ogun PDP?

If you look at what we did in Ogun State in 2019, particularly when you look at the numbers, apart from about 36 of us that aspired for offices under APM, none of us had APM membership card. The over 200,000 voters who voted for me were members of APC and the good people of the state. If you look at our party members in the state, I am not sure we have up to such figures. So, it was the good people of the state that voted massively for me. They believed in us and they are still in the state. Today, they believe more in us because they know that we were robbed in 2019. So, the people have been resolute over the last three years. I go around the state and speak with people. A lot of people still call me, telling me ‘Don’t worry; your time will come in 2023.’ I consulted before I bought the N50million nomination forms of APC. When the primary went the way it went, I still consulted the people and we jointly came to the conclusion that if APC would not give us the platform to actualise our aspiration, we will look for another platform. And in Ogun State today, it is either APC or PDP. And when you look at the new Electoral Act signed by President Muhammadu Buhari, we are confident that votes will count in 2023 unlike in 2019 when we had some governors manning the collation centres and results were manipulated. The Osun State governorship election results have shown us that votes will count with electronic transmission of results. We are confident. For me, by and large, it is about the people and I believe we have the number across Ogun State. Before we came on board, that was part of what I discussed with Honourable Adebutu. I made it very clear to him what our chances are and how far we have gone. PDP has been out of government for 11 years and the party’s structure in the state was kind of hibernating. I can tell you that the PDP in Ogun State is a giant that has just been lying low, but has not woken up. I was in Otta the other day where I met the leaders in Ogun West at the residence of Chief Akinde. I can confidently tell you that the giant PDP has awoken. Our people are happy in PDP and are excited we took the decision. It might not be the best decision considering the fact that a southerner in the person of Senator Bola Tinubu is APC’s presidential candidate. But it was a necessary thing to do to save our dear state from misrule. Ogun State can’t afford another four years of Governor Dapo Abiodun. So, it was a decision that the people of Ogun State wanted and they encouraged us and they even personally called me from Akute and every part of the state that they are happy I took the decision and are ready to vote for PDP and stand by us. Someone even asked me if I knew the motto of Liverpool Football Club and I said ‘no. He replied, ‘never walk alone,’ assuring us that in PDP where we are now, they will double their support for us.

For those of us observing Ogun politics, we see a battle for 2027 intricately linked to the ongoing realignment of forces in the state. Senator Solomon Adeola (Yayi) has been brought from Lagos to temporarily hold Ogun West and later succeed Gov Abiodun in 2027. It  appears you have seen that game and are making a counter move which will likely see Adebutu doing only one term and you to take over if your team wins. Is that the plan?

To be honest, I would not take it far away from that. The incursion of Senator Solomon Adeola into Ogun politics did not start today. Our very courageous leader, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, put his feet down in 2018 and resisted that. The battle is now in our own hands. We are the ones who must continue from where he stopped. He did well for us in Ogun West and he promises to continue to support us further. I am a Yewa man. It will be a disservice and an insult to any true Yewa-born indigene to see someone who is a serving senator in Lagos State coming to pick the senatorial ticket of Ogun West in APC. It is absurd to say the least. In the last three years, I have had time to reflect on my political decisions in life. I have sat down to evaluate this man and it is not as though he is brilliant. The only thing I saw and which people keep talking about is that he has deep pocket. As a political scientist, when you are able to identify what your opponent has going for him, to counter him, you will need to look for a bigger stuff. For us, what he is bringing to Ogun can be described as a dane gun. My collaboration with Honourable Adebutu and the PDP and with the chances of the party in the state today, his dane gun cannot match our military armoured tank. Before we came on board, we pleaded with Honourable Adebutu and the PDP to give us the Ogun West senatorial ticket and we are happy they did. If you look at what is happening in Ogun West today, I am the deputy governorship candidate of the PDP from Ipokia. Ado Odo Otta has the highest votes in Ogun State, not just in Ogun West and Ipokia has the second largest and Yewa North, Yewa South and then Imeko in that order. If our senator comes from Yewa North and Lekan claims to come from Yewa South and Gboyega Nasir Isiaka is already running for House of Representatives from Imeko, Biodun Akinlade is already running for House of Repesentatives from Yewa South, that means Ado Odo Otta becomes a battle ground and that is just strategic for a student of power. So, we begged the PDP family to let us take our senatorial candidate from Ado Odo Otta and give it to somebody with clout and massive recognition in the Otta kingdom. I was in Otta three days ago and I know it is locked down for PDP. So, we will now take the battle back to Yewa South. Ipokia is delivered Insha Allah and we will take the battle to him in Yewa South. Except there is no God, I don’t see how he can beat us. Yes, you are right to say the decision was taken deliberately and calculatedly. At this stage of my life, I must take deliberate and strategic decision and that is what you see in the state today. We need to show them that this is Ogun State, our state and that we are Yewa people. I realised that in 2019, a lot of people erroneously said Yewa people don’t have heavyweights in the politics of the state. It is because certain individuals who still don’t understand what God has given to us in Ogun West will continue to mortgage the grace God has given to us. We have everything, we have the sons and daughters that are very qualified and capable. We will take back Ogun West Insha Allah.

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The last election in Osun has shown that it is the people who will decide the person that will be their governor. Not the heavyweights or the politicians. It will not be politically correct for me to disclose what our strategies are. But I can only assure you that PDP will take over Ogun State in 2023. We have sat down. We have the best technical team on the ground. We have been on this in the last three years. We have what it takes to move the state forward. My case is like the issue of a woman who has been in a bad marriage and has been battered and abused. She packed her things and left. But the village people pleaded with her to return and she complied and was abused the second time and she left again. By the grace of God, I have met a man who appreciates us and that is where I am today. We are being adored and respected where we are today. I have met the national chairman of the PDP, Dr Iyorcha Ayu. I have met more than five governors of the PDP and many others. But in APC, you can’t even see anybody to discuss issues with. In 2023, the people of Ogun State will decide who will govern them.

The decision I took was a personal decision. We had a collective position about 2023 elections. Like I told the leadership of APC and my leader that since Governor Abiodun has been fielded, there is a probability that APC will not have a candidate in 2023. So, there was a decision at that level that, if that happens, what are we going to do? Our leader addressed us and said if there was any of us that wanted to aspire for any office, has what it takes and is popular and has another platform to actual the aspiration as a matter of constitutional right, we should go ahead. This is an open secret within the SIA family. Senator Amosun will still remain in APC and stay with President Muhammadu Buhari till May 29, 2023 and support Senator Tinubu. He did not compel any of us to take the decision. He said for those who are not aspiring, he hopes they will stand to work for him in APC. So, those of us who have ambition decided to realise it elsewhere. There are some in Labour Party and others in APM and AA. By the time the final list of candidates is released, you will see the names of different members of the SIA family in different parties. But for me, I chose PDP. I understand how he will feel that I left. That is the way a good father will feel. He has lifted me so high. Senator Amosun is like a great eagle and has lifted me so high and showed me the great mountain. So, I think I need to take this leap of faith. He might be thinking I will drop and break my leg. I told him to allow me to jump and I have jumped and I have no doubt in my mind that I will make it and he will be proud of me.