- Oyinlola Under Pressure to Drop Adagunodo
- Suspended Chairman May Head For Court On Monday
- Deji Adeleke Causing Friction in PDP for His Brother’s Gov Ambition – Group
By Ismaeel Uthman
It is no longer a news that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the State of Osun is almost in shambles, following the suspension of its Chairman, Hon Soji Adagunodo by the National Working Committee of the party.
Tongues have been wagging over Adagunodo’s suspension, as some notable members of the PDP accused the camp loyal to the Adeleke dynasty of plotting the chairman’s removal as precursor for having a soft landing for the governorship ambition of Senator AdemolaAdeleke.
While the Adagunodo camp has been making frantic efforts to upturn his suspension, the Adeleke group has also embarked on political gimmicks to ensure that the suspended Chairman does not return.
OSUN DEFENDER gathered that there are pressures on former governor of the state, Prince OlagunsoyeOyinlola to cease from supporting Adagunodo.
The medium learnt on Wednesday that the Adeleke camp, led by Alhaji Fatai Diekola, former Chairman of Ilesa-East Local Government, Mr.Ibukun Fadipe and former Chairman of Olorunda Local Government, AlhajiGani Olaoluwa has consistently been mounting pressure on Oyinlola to leave Adagunodo to his fate.
Some stalwarts of the PDP confided in the medium that the billionaire Dr.Deji Adeleke has also offered to support Oyinlola on his ambition to contest the PDP national chairmanship position.
But Oyinlola, according to credible sources, has consistently refused to backtrack in supporting Adagunodo; insisting that the suspended chairman should be allowed to complete his term.
The sources disclosed that the Adeleke group has been sending emissaries, comprising chieftains of the PDP to Adagunodo to dissuade him from going to court tocontest his suspension.
Findings by OSUN DEFENDER revealed that the Adeleke group was tactically delaying Adagunodo from challenging his suspension in court by sending the PDP leaders as emissary to plead with him.
The move, it was learnt, is to exhaust and forfeit the 21-day stipulated timeframe for Adagundo to file a suit in court on his suspension.
Adagunodo was suspended on April 30, 2020 and the 21-day timeframe is supposed to lapse on Wednesday, May 20.
A member of the Adagunodo camp hinted the medium yesterday that the suspended chairman might head for court on Monday; if something promising and assuring did not come out of the reconciliation efforts of Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and Oyinlola.
Adagunodo, it was learnt, wanted to clear himself on the allegation of malfeasance, maladministration and anti-party activities on which he was suspended.
“Even if he is not going to return as chairman, Adagunodo wants justice on his suspension and get his name cleared on the allegations levelled against him by some faceless members of the party. He already knows that the Adeleke camp is tactically delaying him from going to court”, said a member of the party.
.Deji Adeleke Causing Friction in Our Party for His Brother’s Governorship Ambition – Group
Meanwhile, a socio-political group within the PDP in the state, the Osun PDP Concerned Group, has slammed Dr. Deji Adeleke over the ongoing crisis in the party; fingering him as mastermind to the spate of crises.
Adeleke is an elder brother to the PDP’s gubernatorial candidate in the 2018 governorship election, Senator Ademola Adeleke.
The spokesperson of the group, Hon. Akanji Awoniyi, in a press statement made available to OSUN DEFENDER on Wednesday in Osogbo, accused the billionaire Adeleke of masterminding the removal of Adagunodo and the array of frictions within the party.
Awoniyi said posterity would not forgive the elder Adeleke for the role he allegedly played in the plot leading to the ongoing crisis in Osun PDP.
The statement reads in part: “Political watchers in Osun State are learning one or two lessons in the emerging crisis within Osun PDP and the games being played by Dr.Deji Adeleke and his array of fans.
“How they masterminded the suspension of the State Chairman of the party, Hon.Soji Adagunodo is already an open secret. As if that was not enough, he has started searching for a successor ahead of the verdict of the National Disciplinary Committee of the party.
“In far-away Dubai, he perfected the plans and fails to acknowledge the fact that God will not cease to be God and has His way no matter the wish and disposition of any mortal, either rich or poor.
“The happenings in our party are, to say the least, unfortunate. In his double standard and unholy game of chess, Dr. Adeleke attempted to conscript Professor Wale Ladipo into his avowed mission to remove the State Chairman by offering to bankroll his PDP National Chairman ambition, and cede deputy governor slot to his desired nominee come 2022 on condition that the former secretary pull his weight behind the removal of Adagunodo.
“Not satisfied with the position of the former National Secretary, the self-acclaimed PDP sympathizer also reached out to a former governor of the State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, pledging to support his national chairmanship. Which kind of sympathiser is that? We all know where his interest lies and cannot but wonder why he is determined to have his way by fire by crook.
“Wealth without humanity is bullshit. Total nonsense!
“Only God knows what Prince Olagunsoye and Prof Oladipo’s possible collision in respect to their bids for the position of National Chairman would cause again. Dr.Deji is playing games and setting everyone against each other to achieve his ultimate goal of dislodging the State Chairman for eventual control of the party structure in Osun State”.
PDP Youth Leader: Dr Adeleke Has Nothing to Do with Adagunodo’s Travail
However, in a swift reaction, the State Youth Leader of the PDP, Mr Seyi Bamidele has described the group as faceless and unknown to the party.
Bamidele said: “Why would Dr. Adeleke be causing friction in the party? When Senator AdemolaAdeleke was contesting in 2018 and the entire State Working Committee of the PDP was not in his support, he still won the party’s ticket. That is a clear evidence that even without the state party exco in its pocket, the Adeleke dynasty would still find its way.
“There is no organisation that would discover malpractice, maleficence, misappropriation and distrust on its leadership that would not act, and you cannot stop the organization from investigating such practices. It behooves the alleged person to subject himself to investigation.
Why would Dr Adeleke be causing friction in and controlling the party? I did not support Senator Adeleke’s governorship ambition in 2018 and here now, is he the one controlling me? Dr. Adeleke has nothing to do with the current happenings in the party. He has nothing to do with Adagunodo’s removal.”
“We Are Sorry For Osun PDP If Adagunodo Is Not Returned”
In another development, the PDP leadership in Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency of the State of Osun has expressed fears that the party’s fortune would dwindle if Adagunodo’s suspension is not reversed.
The party leaders held that if the injustice meted on Adagunodo is not addressed soon, the PDP might not perform well in the 2022 governorship election.
The Chairman and Convener, Ijesaland PDP Elders Caucus, Chief Dele Faseru in an exclusive interview with OSUN DEFENDER on Tuesday said with the turn of events in the party, the leaders are worried about the chances of the party to reclaim power in the state with the onslaught on Adagunodo.
Faseru said: “If Adagundo is not returned, I will be sorry for the party because we all support him. We admire his ability and his leadership. If people are ignorant and push him aside, it would be a very sorry case for the party, especially during the election.
“There must be reconciliation before the election, if there is no reconciliation, it will not be good at the end of the day. We need to reconcile ourselves and speak with one voice.”
Faseru berated the suspension of the PDP chairman, stressing that it is sad that a loyal and committed party man is maltreated the way Adagunodo was treated.
The PDP leader said: “We are not protesting Adagunodo’s suspension because he is from our side, but because it is a clear injustice and an undeserved onslaught on loyal party members.
On insinuations that the Adeleke family is behind the travails of the suspended chairman, Faseru noted that any division would deepen the ongoing crisis and affect the chances of the party in the next political dispensation.
He said PDP leaders in Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency are solidly behind Adagunodo with a call on the National Working Committee to reverse its decision.
Faseru stated that the PDP leaders in Ijesaland are against the inauguration of Hon. AkanfeAtidade as the Acting Chairman of the party in the state.
“I do not support the inauguration of Atidade as the Acting Chairman of the PDP. I cannot support it. I don’t see what Soji Adagunodo did wrong to warrant his removal. I would not support any other person. We should allow Adagunodo to finish his tenure. We should concentrate and work towards 2022, he said.”
He added: “Right now, we should not because of 2022 election be fighting one another in our party. Adeleke and Ogunbiyi were candidates the other time and there are lots of people who might even want to become governor in the party.
“We should forget the question of whether Adeleke or Ogunbiyi will be the Governor now and work for the progress of the party. There might even be a better candidate. We still have two years ahead.”
At the end of an emergency stakeholders meeting on Tuesday, the PDP leaders in Ijesa Zone unanimously called for peace in the party.
In a communiqué at the end of the meeting issued on behalf of the Chairman, Elders Committee, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, the stakeholders called on the NWC to reverse the step-aside order on Adagunodo and reconcile all warring factions.
Faseru, who signed the communiqué noted that after due consultations with the leaders of the party in the zone and at the state level, there is need for the national leadership to set machineries in motion for the resolution of the internal wrangling in the Osun Chapter of the party .
