Oyetola’s journey to September 22

The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, is intensifying his consultations and mobilisation of voters ahead of the September 22 election. In this piece, his campaign organisation, led by Ajibola Famurewa, highlights the importance of a government of continuity and factors that will tilt the pendulum of victory towards the flagbearer at the poll.

In preparation for the commencement of All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign for the September 22  governorship election in Osun State, Osogbo, the capital, is wearing a new look. Other towns, including Iragbiji, Ede, Ilesa, Ikire, Ikirun, Gbongan and Ife, are not left out in what may easily pass as massive, perhaps even unprecedented, pictorial showdown. Banners boldly displaying attractive pictures of the candidate, Mr. Gboyega Ismail Oyetola and that of his deputy, Gboyega Alabi, adorn the towns and cities.

Pasted on walls, on vehicle screens, fixed on street light poles across places, designed into special rectangular shapes and positioned at road medians, or mounted on purpose-made erections flying sturdily high up at major streets/junctions, larger than life, life or moderate size, banners mostly of the candidate and the APC, numbering thousands, if not millions, welcome people with catchy inscriptions below. Some of the inscriptions, which hint at achievements of the outgoing government and promise more, read: “Your vote is valuable. Your expectation is non-negotiable; investment in workers welfare and wellbeing; more jobs for our youth is our priority; creating a prosperous state for you; let the good work continue; our future is in our hands; seeds and support for farmers; creating an economy that provides opportunity for all; reaching new heights together; vote for progress you know; quality education at all levels; I stand with Ileri Oluwa; we’ve got more work to do; A government of all by all; prosperity beckons” and much more.

All entrances into the capital, major streets, available spaces here and there across towns in the state, Gboyega meets with and greets you with his Íleri Oluwa (the promise of God) catch-phrase, urging you to vote him and his party on the coming day of decision. Whether traveling in vehicles or a trudging pedestrian, and whatever you do, you, whether as resident or visitor, have to behold his pictures, a few times, alongside that of his deputy, beckoning on and sending you smiles that seem to emit subliminal content: Please, look at me and find why you have to vote the APC on September 22! In a picture, the candidate is attired in Yoruba dress with a cap to match. In another, he is seen go the English way. Each picture however radiates some uniqueness that is as infectious as the caption seen just beneath. What manner of inventiveness, what measure of depth went into the making of the banners and the captions, what revolutionary daring has come upon the art of self glorification, as has clearly become the lot of politicians in an age and country in which to be silent is just the way to self-destruct. But why will a party which had done its beat and delivered its promises shirk such role in sufficiently advertising itself in a move to succeed itself? While nearly 30 other parties are in the current race towards September 22, can any among co-contenders genuinely claim to have outperformed the APC in this art of showmanship?

At road sides, inside commercial buses and on commercial motorcycles, intra/inter township vehicular conveyances, at newspaper distribution points, newsstands, everywhere, anywhere, discussions, often starting casually, predictably end in politics, and most of these often reflecting bias of quite a majority towards the outgoing administration of Governor Rauf Aregbesola and the incoming government of Oyetola. Are residents, through such comments, just waiting for the election to announce silent admiration for the outgoing governor, and reward him as well for a job well done?

Oyetola has not been complacent or relaxing upon recorded achievements of an administration, part of which he had been whole eight years. Though campaigns has just started, he has for weeks, even months,  stepped up efforts at parleying various stakeholders through meetings, held most often at his Ileri Oluwa Situation Office, Ibadan Road, Osogbo. Other times meetings held at residences and communities of supporters, in Osogbo and elsewhere. Such meetings through which he had met with well over 200 groups, had seen the Groups pledge their supports, applying such superlative adjectives that tell the story of an Ogbeni Rauf who had braved every odd to institute reversals, significance of which may be difficult to rival or outshine by any succeeding administration, however equally committed in the foreseeable future time.

A few of such groups Oyetola had met so far, included Baales in Osogbo; National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW); APC Youth Leaders; Osun State Labour Leaders; Obas Wives of Ife District; Nigerian Union of Journalists; Osun Youth Group; Ede Community; Osun State APC Women Leaders; National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG); and Iyalode/Iyaloja Group. Others were Owo-ope residents (Osogbo); Osun Network of Kings; Nation Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW); Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN); Nigerians Automobile Technicians Association (NATA); Association of Mini-Bus Drivers (Korope); Mojeed Alabi Coalition for Ileri Oluwa 2018; various student bodies, among others.

Ileri Oluwa, the summative catch-phrase of the APC candidate, which has become a sing-song on many a tongue of his admirers  is equally the name of his campaign office, located specifically at Onward, Gbongon-Ibadan Road, deriving, as it were, from a long time prayerful rendition among the Yoruba, reflecting a sense of self-assuredness, as well as staunch belief by the singers, in an Unseen Power, believed to pave way and ease tasks, amidst/despite whatever challenges.

Aregbesola’s redemptive interventions, which together sum into what had been captured as Osun Social Safety Net policies, had given the state a pride of place among other states in the country. Projects, including construction/completion of 70 state of the art model schools across 30 councils in Osun and Modakeke; construction of over 1000 kilometre quality/standard roads across the state; Osun Youth Enterprise Scheme (O’Yes), Osun Homegrown School Feeding Scheme (O’Meal), Osun Rural Enterprise and Agric Programme (O’REAP), Osun Ambulance Scheme (O’Ambulance), Osun Robo (O’Robo), and many others, which have won such global acclaim that national and world bodies, including the Federal Government (FG), had variously come to understudy them, marveling indeed at the extreme finesse in programmes’ conception and unusual candour in their implementation.

Some of the individuals, who bared their minds in respect of the programmes, included Kayode Alatise, a teacher in Osogbo, who explained that the APC had done well for Osun and its people, irrespective of what anyone might say. Although, according to him, he had been in the Teaching Service long before the outgoing administration came aboard, innovations and programmes he had seen in education alone in the last eight years had been the best so far in entire history of the state.

He spoke: “I am proud today to say anywhere I am an indigene of Osun State, from Ife, but resident in Osogbo. I cannot but express pride in the achievements of Aregbesola in education. His wholesale renovation/reconstruction of school buildings into now famous High, Middle and Elementary Schools. Go to Osogbo Government High School, Ataoja Government High School, and Fakunle Unity Government High School, all in Osogbo here and see wonders. Yes, it is true state government is owing me some months salary, it is a general trend in the country, and even globally. But, despite this situation, Aregbesola has done not just something, but very many things we all can see.”

Oluwatobi Felicia, an advert canvasser, equally urged residents to vote the APC, warning of the consequences of allowing another party to take over the state from the APC, which she commended for many poverty alleviation programmes and giving the state projects she described as world-class.

Her words: “I want to warn residents of this state not to allow the Ekiti experience to repeat itself in Osun. In Ekiti, one of the moves outgoing Governor Ayodele Fayose made upon assuming office was to cancel entire poverty alleviation programmes of his then predecessor, now successor-elect, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, which benefitted about 70,000 directly and several thousands indirectly.

“Fayemi’s programmes, including 5,000 monthly stipend to the elderly, dubbed Owo Arugbo, Ekiti Peace Corps, Ekiti Youths in Commercial Agriculture (Y-CAD), Ekiti Volunteer Aids Corps, and many others were canceled in one fell swoop by a Fayose who cared in no way what becomes of the beneficiaries of the programmes and their dependants. Our people should wake up, vote Gboyega Oyetola on the election day to avert the doom of falling into hands with no clear agenda, either for people or state.”

In Yakoyo, a contiguous town to Ipetumodu, Osun North Senatorial District, Oyetola, during a private visit to General Alani Akinrinade, witnessed such rare gesture of admiration among the citizenry, when about 200, even 300 admirers, trooped out, despite the lateness of the hour, repeatedly chanting the slim Ileri Oluwa theme-song: Emi ti ni idani lo’ju (I have the unmistakable assurance); Pe ni’nu odun ti awa yi (That in this very year we are); Gbogbo oro mi ni lati d’ayo (All issues about my life must be joyfully resolved/Success must succeed all my travails); Ileri Oluwa n’lati se (Avowals/promises of God must come to pass). They danced, crowding round the likely successor of Aregbesola, shaking hands, gesturing others ways to show proofs that he is both loved and accepted as the one being awaited to step into the shoes of Aregbesola. Moved, Oyetola himself joined the singing band, radiating so much joy that he parted with certain cash gift, as honour to these implacable votaries of the progressive cause.

The candidate himself has, at several of such meetings, made promises to build upon existing legacies of the current administration, finetune where necessary to make programmes serve the populace better. Speaking at a parley with Owo-ope residents in Osogbo, the APC candidate, who had danced to songs of glory and assurances, clarified in his speech, the APC was the only party which had development of the people as a credo, maintaining his administration would sustain programmes and policies of the outgoing government, and make such additions as would improve lives and living conditions of the citizenry, even better.

Oyetola, who actually represented Governor Aregbesola, explained: “We will make Osogbo Dubai of Nigeria.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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