Batists Have Slavery In Their DNA
- By Sola Fasure
This is just another piece from the playbook of Tinubu media office. Their line of attack is similar and predictable.
Anyone formerly associated with Tinubu and not on his train now is a betrayer. Fashola, Ambode, Osinbajo, Ojudu etc. It’s a familiar script, the same dossier they hand over to the commissioned writers on the matter. In the end, it becomes what Soyinka calls ‘transparent subterfuge’
To be clear, the relationship between Aregbesola and Tinubu began in the ill-fated Third Republic when Tinubu just joined politics and wanted to contest the Lagos West Senatorial primary election of the SDP. He needed a pointsman in Alimoso and was directed to Rauf Aregbesola, who not only won the primary but the election itself for him.
But the author, out of ignorance or mischief deliberately cut this off the narrative, portraying Aregbesola as a scruffy upstart in Lagos politics.
It’s evident from the bitter blood dripping from this piece the inability of the author to get a contract from the then Lagos works commissioner.
But his biggest disservice to the readers is his cluelessness on the basis and details of the issue between Aregbesola and Tinubu.
When Tinubu told Aregbesola to make Oyetola governor, he immediately set up a committee to sell him to the party because Oyetola was relatively unknown in the party. The committee returned with the ominous verdict that he was rejected by the party.
When Aregbesola discussed this with Tinubu and he insisted on Oyetola, Aregbesola came back to Osogbo to tell us to work for Oyetola, that the decision has been made and irreversible.
I remember Aregbesola telling us at the start of the state exco meeting that Wednesday that Oyetola was the choice and anyone who didn’t support the choice should resign from the government.
The choice of Oyetola tore APC apart and many party stalwarts left for ADP and PDP which almost cost the party the election.
It’s therefore heart rendering to see this narrative mangled so badly to read that Aregbesola didn’t support Oyetola as the basis of the crisis between them.
Again, to be clear, Oyetola was not the basis of their disagreement, but he was a player. THE ISSUE BETWEEN TINUBU AND AREGBESOLA WAS THE PERCEPTION OF TINUBU THAT AREGBESOLA WOULD CONTEST THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION AGAINST HIM. If you don’t understand this, sorry, you are at sea on the matter and except you probe deeper, you will sink deep into ignorance.
Oyetola played well his role to reverse Aregbesola’s works in Osun and deny him the platform of the state. This is just as Tinubu also folded up the Lagos platform, ostensibly to deny him any political base for the purported presidential ambition.
But labelling anyone perfidious on matters of political choice has no place in a democracy which guarantees freedom of choice.
People who make this kind of accusation are those Soyinka said have slavery in their DNA. For them, if your path crossed with someone, you are permanently trapped in their shadow and must not move on in your life again. This is a slavish mentality.
Their disagreement is political and certainly not moral. It’s in monarchy that everyone is required to support the king, not so in a democracy.
I will suggest the writer sticks to writing on issues like the feud between Portable and VDM and the fashion styles of celebrities and their love life. His writing here amounts to diving way beyond his depth.
The opinions expressed in this publication are solely those of the author. It does not represent the editorial position or opinion of OSUN DEFENDER.
