Stop spreading falsehoods against Oyo governor, Fayose, Olafeso told

Chief Press Secretary to the Oyo state governor, Mr Taiwo Adisa has chided former Ekiti State governor, Ayodele Fayose and zonal chairmanship aspirant, Mr Eddy Olafeso for allegedly masterminding media attack against Governor Seyi Makinde over the recent South-West zonal congress of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held in Osogbo.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Adisa expressed surprise that Fayose, despite conceding defeat of his candidate, Eddy Olafeso, was engaging in media warfare to impugn the personality of the governor and rubbish the congress.

According to Adisa, the new move by Fayose and his candidate, Eddy Olafeso can be seen in recent media interviews where they have cast aspersions on the integrity of Makinde as well as the Osogbo congress.

While decrying what was described as an ungodly pattern of building a false narrative around the congress to rubbish it, Makinde’s spokesperson cautioned Fayose against making unguarded statements and spreading falsehoods against the Oyo governor.

The statement reminded Fayose and Olafeso of his earlier promise to abide by the outcome of the congress while calling on all stakeholders in the South-West PDP to accept the outcome of the Osogbo congress in good faith and join hands with other leaders to build a virile party.

Furthermore, Adisa admonished the former governor and other leaders on the need to stand by the truth, be men of their words and give the necessary support to the new zonal chairman of the party, Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja.

The statement read, in part: “We make bold to say that while those who lost the election at the congress are allowed to rue their loss despite the assurance by Governor Makinde that there will be no winner or loser, it is expedient that they guard their utterances and avoid any descent into the gutter.

“Governor Makinde had equally described the congress as a family affair, promising to work with anyone who emerged winner, with the climax of the Monday, April 12, 2021, event being the eventual acceptance of Governor Makinde as the leader of the South-West PDP by former Governor of Ekiti State, Mr Ayodele Fayose.

“One is, therefore, surprised that less than 48 hours after that acceptance and the commitment to work with Governor Makinde to build the party, the former governor is masterminding an assault against Governor Makinde over the peaceful congress in which the latter made it clear that there would be ‘no victor, no vanquished.’

“One can see the ungodly pattern Makinde’s critics are following by trying to build a false narrative around the congress with a view to rubbishing it.

“It should, therefore, come as a surprise to the public that the same camp that claimed that it had conceded defeat and was ready to work with Arapaja, is now engaging in media warfare against the governor.

“In the morning of Wednesday, Mr. Eddy Olafeso was on national TV to lay the foundation for what would be a sustained effort to tarnish the image of the governor. By evening, the cycle was completed by Mr. Fayose, who also appeared on the same medium.

“This has proven that false alarm and deliberate falsehood are being deployed to rubbish an otherwise peaceful congress.

“While we would not like to join issues with Mr. Fayose and those who contested against Ambassador Arapaja, over the outcome of the congress, we would like to caution that no one should attempt to impugn the personality of Governor Makinde, a peace-loving individual, who has never got anything by violence. The peaceful conduct of his campaign while running for office as governor of Oyo State is an attestation to this fact.”

The statement further described the statement by Fayose where he described Makinde as being ‘quiet but deadly’ as baseless, made in bad faith and should be discountenanced by all well-meaning individuals.

Adisa also stated that it appears that those raising unfounded issues against the congress might be smarting from ‘failing in an art they thought they had perfected.’

He noted that the claim that some members of a Road Transport Union followed Governor Makinde to Osogbo was spurious and puerile.

The statement described the Oyo governor as a peace-loving man and that he should not be accused of something he knew nothing about.

It stated that any individual could have found his/her way to Osogbo and claim to have been in the governor’s convoy but that such claim should not be taken as sacred.

The statement further wondered why despite the claims by Fayose and Olafeso, there was not a single case of violence or arrest of anyone loyal to Governor Makinde at the congress.

The statement added that if some individuals decided to explore their freedom of movement and expression by travelling to Osogbo for sightseeing and then made a video, which is deemed offensive, Fayose should have reported to the appropriate authorities instead of seeking to defame the character of Governor Makinde.

The statement added that “the South-West PDP zonal congress held in Osogbo has come and gone and there is no doubt that it will go down the history lane as one of the most peaceful PDP congresses in the zone.

“The peaceful conduct of that congress, one must say, followed the body language and actions of the leader of the party in the zone, Governor Makinde, a man renowned for being a peaceful politician.

“Despite the desperation and provocations from the Fayose camp, the governor maintained his calm and guided the zone to a peaceful congress that has now produced worthy leaders for the party.

“The governor made it clear from the outset that the congress was about rebuilding and strengthening the South-West PDP and he worked hard to ensure that the party puts its best forward, as, according to him, whatever happened in that congress had ramifications for the national polity.

“Therefore, going on air to say that Governor Makinde is ‘quiet but deadly’ is not only unstatesmanlike, it is also unguarded, malicious and wicked.”

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