Osun Guber: Why Oyetola Lost In Odo-Otin LG – APC Stalwart

By Ismaeel Uthman 

A stalwart of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyan, Odo-Otin Local Government of the State of Osun, Prince Jide Zubair, has said that the ‘deep-seated hatred’ for the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola in the hearts of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola and his followers led to electoral defeat of the party in the July 16 governorship election.

According to Zubair, the emergence of Sen. Ademola Adeleke as the Governor-elect of the state, is as a result of massive protest votes against Oyetola by thousands of APC members and the general electorates who did not appreciate the governor’s ingratitude behavior to his benefactor, Aregbesola.

The Oyan born business mogul, popularly known as JZ, stated this while reviewing the outcome of the election with OSUN DEFENDER yesterday. 

He said: “Governor Oyetola lost his reelection because he is ungrateful to God and his benefactor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola. He bitted the finger that fed him and the people revolted against him through their votes. 

“In our local government, Odo-Otin, the representatives of the governor, Abdullahi Binuyo, the Deputy Chief of Staff and Funke Egbemode, the Commissioner for Information and Civil Orientation are paperweight politicians who misled the governor. They are not popular nor loved by the people. Unfortunately, they are the ones that are badmouthing credible politicians before the governor. 

“Both Binuyo and Egbemode were busy fighting Aregbesola’s loyalists in the local government and giving the governor wrong impression. 

“Binuyo lost his ward 10 to PDP while Egbemode lost her Ward 7 to PDP as well during the election. Both Binuyo and Egbemode did not make move to unite members of the party in the local government. Instead, they wore a toga of ‘we don’t need them (Aregbesola’s people). These are politicians that are not relating well with the people of their immediate environment.

“Immediately Oyetola was sworn-in, Binuyo was part of the people who met at Baba Moyin’s house in Ila-Odo, where they concluded that they do not want to hear anything like Aregbesola in the political space of Osun. And it is this same Aregbesola that brought Binuyo to limelight in Osun politics. 

“These people have even done damage to Osun than what you may think of. Let them explain their roles in the mismanagement of Osun State government assets (gold and feldspar) in Kogi State.”

Speaking on why he did not advise the governor before the election, Zubair said, “Aregbesola introduced me to the Governor and Oyetola and I had a smooth relationship at the initial stage. But the relationship got sour when Binuyo poisoned his mind.  

“Aregbesola did not introduce Oyetola to me as his enemy; but Oyetola made me to realise that anybody with Aregbesola is his core enemy. He wanted me to turn against Aregbesola and failure to do that, they attacked my business and came for me politically.

“It was the hatred for Aregbesola that contributed to Oyetola’s defeat because people of conscience were sympathetic to Ogbeni; they know Oyetola betrayed and plotted the downfall of his benefactor. So, the people voted against Oyetola to tell him that it is Aregbesola they love and not him or APC.

“APC has never lost election in Oyan but the party did not win in the town in the last governorship election simply because our people who know and feel sorry for all of us that are being cheated and maltreated in the party by Oyetola embarked on massive protest votes against the governor.”

On the way forward to re-organising the party for future elections, Zubair said the APC national leadership should restructure the party and make Aregbesola its leader in the state.