By Charles Akinbode
Former chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Elder Adebiyi Adelowo, has denied that Barr. Kolapo Alimi and Dr. Biyi Odunlade, secured their nominations to serve as cabinet members in the Ademola Adeleke administration on behalf of The Osun Progressives (TOP).
He described as mischievous for anybody to say the duo got the nominations on behalf of the TOP, a group within Osun State APC, which he said had been dissolved since last year.
Adelowo, in a statement on Saturday, said Alimi had decamped to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for close to two years now as a member of TOP.
He maintained that both Alimi and Odunlade were recognized by merits and not on behalf of the TOP.
The statement reads: “Our attention has been drawn to a jaundiced report apparently sponsored by some groups of politically naive elements in Osun APC alleging that Governor Ademola Adeleke included Aregbesola/TOP men in the list of his nominees for cabinet positions.
“The writer of the supposed story, which really qualified as a composition, gave himself away as a mischief maker or confused person when he falsely stated that Kolapo Alimi Esq., who had decamped to PDP for close to two years now, is a member of TOP.
“Like the writer stated, a lot of speculations had been made by the electorally injured group, Ilerioluwa, within our party, the APC, with a view to blame their failure on TOP but which we have evidently rebuffed. We note that this is another attempt after their failed mission to blackmail us.
“We equally note that their electoral pains, especially the magnitude of the loss suffered by the arrogant Ilerioluwa group could be very painful to an extent that it has affected them to think rationally. But we want to remind them that they are architects of their own misfortune because of their empty boasts and grandstanding and for excluding majority of party members from the process.
“Again, they kept speculating that Hon. Biyi Odunlade had joined the PDP in not too distant past and it would be recalled that TOP had been dissolved since last year, hence it may be an academic exercise to categorically state correctly his status politically.
“Of course, we can’t deny the fact that the the two gentlemen were our own and indeed associates of our patron, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola. We State in categorical terms that they must have earned their nominations by merits and not on behalf of TOP.
“This is yet another opportunity for the political loafers in Ilerioluwa group to blackmail the TOP and we are not in any doubt that they will continue to agonize over their woeful but needless loss of the July 16, 2022 and the 2023 general elections.
“We shouted ourselves hoarse about the degenerated state of the party but their lack of political understanding aided by selfishness didn’t allow them to see our call for party restructuring for election wining purposes.
“We reaffirm our commitment to the APC, the progressives platform, which we worked assiduously for its reinstatement into government in 2010, costing us sweat and blood along with other patriots after the manipulative debacle of 2003.
“We state again that Governor Ademola Adeleke was referring to the breakaway group members that joined the PDP and not the entire caucus and that the original TOP with Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola as our patron did not engage the Osun PDP at any time.”
