How Oyetola Fueled Aregbesola, Tinubu’s Strained Relationship — Oyelami
A chieftain of the Accord party in Osun State, Hon. Rasaq Oyelami, has alleged that former Osun State governor, Gboyega Oyetola, played a significant role in the strained relationship between former governor Rauf Aregbesola and President Bola Tinubu.
Speaking on Agbami Oselu, a political programme on Fresh FM Osogbo, Oyelami stated that Oyetola, who served as Chief of Staff for eight years under Aregbesola, was deeply involved in key policy decisions of the administration, including the modulated salary payment introduced during the state’s financial crisis.
According to Oyelami, the modulated salary policy was a deliberate strategy to prevent mass retrenchment of workers, which was a collective decision of top government functionaries.
“The modulated (half-salary) policy was not wickedness; it was a survival strategy. The alternative at the time was to sack thousands of workers. However, in order not to allow history repeat itself where previous administrations before Aregbesola laid off workers abruptly and led to deaths of many civil servants, his government chose to protect jobs.
“The executive council, including Oyetola, were part of the decision. It was agreed that senior officials would bear the brunt so that lower cadre workers could keep their jobs,” Oyelami stated.
He, however, accused Oyetola of later distancing himself from the policy after becoming governor, alleging that he publicly criticised the initiative and failed to clear the outstanding salary arrears.
On the political rift that led to Aregbesola’s exit from the All Progressives Congress (APC), Oyelami alleged that Oyetola contributed to the breakdown in the relationship between the former Minister of Interior and Tinubu.
“Where there is disagreement, it should be resolved early. If Oyetola truly wanted peace, this crisis wouldn’t have escalated the way it did.
“For Aregbesola to leave a party he laboured to build was not easy. But when efforts at reconciliation fail, people are left with no choice,” the Accord party chieftain added.
Hafsoh Isiaq is a graduate of Linguistics. An avid writer committed to creative, high-quality research and news reportage. She has considerable experience in writing and reporting across a variety of platforms including print and online.
