Kazeem Badmus
PROMINENT leaders and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the State of Osun lost their respective local governments to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the July 16 governorship election in the state.
The APC leaders whom many believed would deliver their individual’s local government and constituencies for Governor Adegboyega Oyetola’s re-election performed woefully.
OSUN DEFENDER noted that in Ila local government, the hometown of the first National Chairman of APC, Chief Bisi Akande, the PDP candidate, Sen. Ademola Adeleke won by polling 13,036 votes against Oyetola’s 11,163 votes.
Akande, a former governor of the state and national leader of the party was widely expected to win the local government for APC, considering his position in the party and his contribution in facilitating a Federal University to the town.
Also, the Chairman of the APC in the State, Prince Gboyega Famodun, Deputy Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Hon. Femi Popoola and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Political Matters, Mr. Sunday Akere were unable to deliver Boluwaduro local government for APC.
Famodun and Akere are from Igbajo, while Popoola is from Otan-Ayegbaju, the headquarters of the local government.
Oyetola polled 5,649 votes while Adeleke secured 5,860 votes in the local government.
In Osogbo, the Director-General of Oyetola’s Campaign Council, Dr. Ajibola Basiru lost his Ward 7 and the entire Osogbo local government.
Since the return of democracy in 1999, progressives party has always been winning the local government until the last governorship election.
The local government which is the stronghold of APC in the past elections and which many had believed Oyetola would win turned out to be his nightmare.
Basiru who is the current Senator representing Osun Central at the Senate, had boasted on several occasions that the PDP candidate cannot be a clerk in an organisation not to talk of leading a state.
The Senate spokesperson was also among those who claimed that the leaders of The Osun Progressives (TOP), a caucus within the APC, are of no value, describing them as paper weight politicians.
But the senator was unable to win his own ward and local government where Adeleke recorded 30,401 votes to defeat Oyetola who polled 22,952 votes.
Basiru voted at unit 5, Ward 7. APC had 178 votes while PDP polled 67 in the unit.
However, the senator lost his ward to PDP which total vote was 1715 against APC’s 1650 votes.
Also, the Commissioner for Works and Transport, Engr. Remi Omowaiye and the APC candidate for Osun West Senatorial District in the 2023 general elections, Hon. Ajibola Famurewa were soundly defeated by PDP in their Ilesa West local government.
Adeleke polled 13,769 to defeat Oyetola who recorded 10,777 votes.
Omowaiye is one of the Oyetola’s kitchen cabinet members.
