I Don't Need Ogbomoso and Akala's Votes to Win the Election - Seyi Makinde Reiterates

The Guber Candidate of the PDP in Oyo State, Engr. Seyi Makinde yesterday reiterated it loud to the listening ears at a meeting briefly organised by some sociopolitical clubs in Ibadan that he doesn't need any vote from Ogbomoso and any Alao Akala group to win the next election coming up on the 9th of March, 2019.

He reiterated the words again for the people gathered to allay fears that might arise from the heat of the election campaign. He said there have been rumors about Chief Adebayo Alao Akala meeting with the chieftains of the ruling party, APC. He questioned the integrity of the two caucus meeting and what they both stand to lose from the accord. He said Ogbomoso that the APC wants to form a merger with, have a meagre percentage of voters in Oyo State which is considerably low and will have no real effect on the election eventual outcome.

He said the PDP stands tall above its peers in the presidential election, so therefore he is posed to win the election come 9th of March. He went on to say how he can match the APC fire for fire, pound for pound and cash for cash. He said he has the financial strength to compete and in fact overpower the ruling party APC.

He then told his supporters to come out and vote for the PDP so as to enjoy the dividends of democracy and cut short the regime of the apc. He maintained that it is only the PDP that can salvage the people of Oyo state from poverty and the PDP have shown that in the last election by giving the registered voters huge sums of cash for votes on the presidential election date, he said they will even do more for his own election.

I Don't Need Akala to Win My Election - Seyi Makinde

The gubernatorial candidate of the PDP in Oyo State, Engr. Seyi Makinde yesterday while addressing a group of traders and artisans in Ibadan, the state capital said he does not need the support of Adebayo Alao Akala to defeat the APC candidate, Chief Bayo Adelabu, in the state. He said this while canvassing for the support of some sect of traders and market unions present at an event organized yesterday.

Seyi Makinde comments were probably a rejoinder to the recently released BBC video of Chief Adebayo Alao Akala who claimed that Seyi Makinde was a neophyte in the political circle, that he should go and begin from the preliminary stage and that he had never been a councillor, chairman, house of representative or senator before aspiring to become the governor of the state. In the same video, he further likened Makinde attempt at the governorship seat to the popular phrase - 'hop step and jump', that he is not fit to become the governor of the state.

Seyi Makinde at the organised event paraphrased most of Chief Adebayo Alao Akala comments and said he can do it alone despite the negative comments by former governor, Adebayo Akala. He went on to say that with the support of Abubakar Atiku and the PDP at large, he can move mountains in Oyo State. He thanked the people present at the event and asked them not to be disturbed with the negative comments of Chief Alao Akala as he will reach the promise land of Oyo State without the support of the former governor.

Ajimobi: A True Democrat's Way of Defeating a Defeat By Isiaka Kehinde

"When you see a leader, you can see an organization" - Charles Galloway

An hero may suffer a momentary defeat, he never feels deflated. He sits up afterwards, never suck up a moment. This is what psychologist called "accepting defeat gracefully". Only a man with a large heart like Governor Abiola Ajimobi can treat the two extremes of both success and defeat with such equanimity that keeps lesser beings drooling. He has really proven right the inventors of the old maxim which says "Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional".

Before the much awaited final result was let open some people with doom-laden thoughts were already gathering in twos and threes talking in hush tones on how  Governor Ajimobi would never accept defeat in the just concluded Oyo South Senatorial election. Going with the pockets of "grievious infractions and patent electoral malpractices that accompanied the election as claimed by Governor Ajimobi himself, to an unbiased mind, it  wouldn't have been a moral misjudgement if he had flagrantly refused to accept the outcome. But he did accept and proved the cynics wrong.  The question was flying in the air all over the town that how could the "constituted authority" have  allowed the cup to pass without even a little fight? What a flawed personality judgement!

A sage says you can't prevent defeat but  you can control your reaction, if only you are stronger than the defeat. A strong and reliable leader that he is, Governor Ajimobi beated every inclination towards deafeatism with matured mind. He didn't allow himself to be enfeebled by the defeat, rather, as he said 'decided to let go in the interest of peace" . Not every man in his shoes will let go his ego and calmly accepted the situation. He has really proven that leadership is not about ego trip - it's a sacrifice. The defeat might have come with serious pains, but he applied peace as a soothing balm which he considers greater than the electoral drawbacks.

Kudos to the Koseleri governor for not accepting the non-accepting emotions to overrun him.  He loves his state so much that he didn't want his beloved state to be on fire, thus, he carefully avoided what the philosopher KR Popper called "unwanted consequences of our actions". His action bespoke not hypocritical humility but a sincere one. He believes that no difficulty must be too strong to be overcome. He honoured the good people of Oyo state by keeping untainted the honorific status that his exalted office confers. He chose public interest above personal interest in a free exchange that is not by any means a fair exchange. He deserves our applauses.

That Ajimobi has defeated his defeat with positive thinking deserves our collective praise. He conceded defeats to strengthen his party towards the realisation of his Next Level project. He knows full well that a party survives only when it is strong. He said 'if I loose the ticket and the party was able to gain, then there is nothing to feel sad about". And the after-polls  results  evidently corroborated this: nine House of Representatives members, two senators all in one grab is by no means a negligible feat.

When you loose with grace, you are winning another race. Behind the cloud of one defeat is another silver line lurking. As they say, when you overcome the earth, the stars will be all yours. Governor Ajimobi has just paid his own ticket as a ransom for the state to flourish.

Governor Ajimobi gave kudos to the good people of Oyo state for "appreciating the development stride of APC in the state". This, he said, they have demonstrated by coming out in large number to vote for the APC candidates in the Saturday  Presidential and NASS elections. He also called on the people of Oyo state to replicate same gesture by voting in the APC governorship candidate a quiescent exemplar, Adebayo Adelabu Penkelemesi and the State Assembly candidates fielded by the party. For a man who has sacrificed hugely for the state with his own Senatorial bid, me thinks, he has not demanded too much a recompense. Let's join hands to move Oyo state to the next developmental level. That's Governor Ajimobi's dream. We must make it happen.

How Bayo Adelabu Delivered his Polling Unit for Buhari and Ajimobi

The APC gubernatorial candidate in Oyo State, Chief Bayo Adelabu on Saturday made sure he delivered his polling unit to President Muhammadu Buhari and Sen. Abiola Ajimobi as a mark of loyalty and passion for his party and leadership.

He made certain that he won with a wide margin to portray his commitment to the party and let the people know that he knows about the intrigue in politics.

In his ward 9, polling unit 10 of Ibadan South East in Oke-Oluokun at the home of the great sage, Adegoke Adelabu Penkelemesi, President Muhammadu Buhari polled 60 votes against the PDP candidate, Atiku Abubakar, who polled 36.

In the same for polling unit for the senatorial election, Sen. Abiola Ajimobi polled 60 votes while the PDP candidate Dr. Kola Balogun polled 23 votes. He also won the House of Representative votes with 58 votes to the PDP 21.

Bayo Adelabu was at the polling unit with his wife, Chief (Mrs) Seyi Adelabu who also came out to exercise her civil responsibility and vote for her preferred candidates.

Post Olamiju Akala Suspension from the APC, Alao Akala Set to Decamp to the PDP

It is no longer news in Oyo State that the chairman of Ogbomoso North LG, Olamijuwon Alao Akala has been suspended from office. He was relieved of his chairmanship role after he was seen participating in the election campaign and then tendering his official letter of decamp from the ruling party to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

In the same vein, the former governor of Oyo State and father of Olamijuwon, Gov. Adebayo Alao Akala is being rumored to be in close shave with the PDP guber candidate in the state, Engr. Seyi Makinde, over a purported plan to decamp to the PDP. Unconfirmed report reaching us is that Seyi Makinde has reserved a huge sum of money running into billions from the money allocated for the presidential election for his gubernatorial election come March 9. He is also believed to have awarded a huge lump of cash to Adebayo Alao Akala as a mark of commitment to decamp and work for the African Democratic Party (ADP).

Though Chief Adebayo Alao Akala has debunked the rumors making the rounds that he is working for the PDP, many of the ADP faithfuls however, find it difficult to take his words as he's widely known for his wavering and hoggish style of taking sensitive political decisions without awarding due consideration for his party members. The members and executives of the ADP are therefore also taking into the cognisance their comeuppance when eventually Gov Alao Akala finally sells them and the party to the PDP.

One of the ADP chieftains on hearing this revelation and who would prefer to remain anonymous said there's an ongoing plan in the state executive to protest against such frivolous and gross incompetence from their governorship candidate and party draconian leadership of Adebayo Alao Akala.

Adelabu Never Plan Massive Lay Off of Oyo Workers - FOBA

Our attention has been drawn to a wild rumour making the rounds in some quarters that the governorship candidate of the APC in Oyo state, Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has in pipeline to retrench workers, should he emerge victorious in the forthcoming election.

The rumor which was part of the calculated gambit of an opposition party to obstruct the reasoning of the civil servants in the state and cast a pall of fear into their minds was another lie of commission that has become the new fad of the opposition elements already jittery of their impending jarring electoral defeat.

We are however amazed at the value debasement  of spreading falsehood that the opposition parties have sunk into all in the name of politics, especially at this time when the world has tilted towards issue-based politics. Sooner than later, their lies will fail, truth will prevail.

We hereby urge the members of the public especially the civil servants not to fall for the cheap blackmail of the opposition. By contrast, they should renew their hope in Adebayo Adelabu Penkelemesi, a man of nobility of character who is in politics to promote welfare of the society and dignity of humanity.

We need to point out here that Oloye Adebayo Adelabu's entire policy thrust is aimed at constructing never to destruct. He has mapped out some cutting edge strategies that will improve the lot of the civil servants, develop human resources,  strengthen institutions and advance the interest of the entire people of Oyo state.

It is disheartening that instead of coming out with their own developmental plan (if at all they have any), the opposition elements who are apparently backwardly mobile are renouncing rightful thinking and resorting to deceits and cheap blackmail to palaver the voters. Thankfully, the electirates are wiser.

We hereby urge the good people of Oyo state not to be swayed by the hand wringing antics of the opposition elements and remain resolute in pursuing the goodness of Oyo state through their unflagging support for Oloye Adebayo Adelabu. Together we will move Oyo state to the next level.

When the Genuine Philanthropy of Engr. Seyi Makinde Becomes a Doubt

"The proper aim of giving is to put the recipients in a state where they no longer need our gifts." – C. S. Lewis

When Lewis made this assertion, he probably had a similar dilemma and school of thought as most of the Oyo state electorates with regards to our present state of mind in choosing our probable leader.

The primary aim of philanthropy is to alleviate poverty at the barest, this is achieved by relieving the society of the extra burden of the poor or the masses by transforming the standard of living of the people to a new level in economic growth through provision of jobs, job materials or professional trainings to improve the capacity of the people. This should be the goal and not the other way round where you watch the people come back for their daily needs everyother day.

This is easily the core undertone defining the pattern of votes of most electorates who galvanize a misconception of sympathy towards one of the candidates in this year's election. The CEO of Makon Group and candidate in one of the political parties in this year's election, has probably engaged in philanthropy to an unprecedented level, however, he has failed to take philanthropy to the level prescribed by Lewis. He has failed to teach the people how to fish, he has given them fishes over the years, yet they return to his doorstep for more, hence enhancing the blind perception that he gives to the poor. So much for giving alms that you forget to teach the people how to create wealth and not allow them come back to beg from your coffers of affluence.

By simple persistency, Seyi Makinde is palpably appealing to the sympathy of the electorates, he has been here and there fiddling with the minds of the people saying how much he will eradicate suffering of the people of Oyo State. However, he goofed with this rational assumption, he is merely playing with the intelligence of the voters by trying too hard to reap from where he did not sow. His antecedents must be inline with his proposition for the people of Oyo state before he can be trusted with the economy of the state. He has been at the forefront of the election phase since 2007, yet his mark of philanthropy on the lives of the Oyo State citizenry has not gone beyond sheer charity.

He enjoys flaunting his immense wealth with his favorite maxim - 'eni to ba fe daso funyan, torun e lako ma wo', but instead he should make an exhibition of his contribution to human and economic development aside the common alms giving he is known for, which are relatively crumbs or tiny fractions of his wealth, at a stage where it ought to have transformed to an epochal and exemplary gesture to the people.

At the last debate at Splash FM, he was waxing lyrical on how he will go about the transformation of the economic position of Oyo State with the Agricultural revamp and giving particular due interest to Oke-Ogun zone as the vantage point of execution. What he obviously forgot to mention was how he had practiced it in his personal capacity, a much reflection of his maxim 'eni toba fe daso funyan, torun e lako ma wo'. Engr. Seyi Makinde is obviously out to steer the ship of Oyo State on a voyage he has never been to himself, in his entire working capacity. He has never tried his hands on Agriculture. He has no known business setup here in Oyo State, he is not known for employing any large number of Oyo State indigenes in his business empire. He hasn't enthused either of his intension to borrow from any prototypical venture of his as a standard for showcasing his vast experience in any sector other than the oil sector which is nonexistence in retreading the economy of Oyo State. It is all fictional to him. A blatant pretence to selfishly become the first citizen of Oyo State hence, return us back to those inglorious days of inept and shallow leadership. We are off that!

His philanthropic gesture should however, not go underwhelmed or unnoticed, this is only a proponent for actualisation of true and sincere altruism which is the mean to an end of philanthropy. He has to expand his horizon and practice alleviation of poverty using the global best practice of job creation and capacity development, not the tongue in cheek approach he is believed to be operating. His true leadership endowment comes into question with his primitive and short sighted bearing, which will evidently characterise his approach of governance and will not readily go down well with the developmental pattern of the State laid down by the present Governor, Sen. Abiola Ajimobi, replica of the proverbial, 'taking one step forward, then taking two steps back', which we gravely frown at for our dear Oyo State.

Bayo Adelabu Penkelemesi: Between Arrogance, Humility and the Humble Pie

To some people, you are a humble man only if you can lower your head to receive their hard  knocks. They expect you to emotes a sign of hunger even when you have just filled your stomach with sumptuous meal. If they refer to that as being humble, they probably don't know what  hypocritical humility is.

When you sit up to confront your fears, to them, you are arrogant. It's only when you suck up and fuck up that you are considered humble .  The pertinent question here is, must anyone pretend inferiority to merit "a humble man award?"  That honour would be unmerited as it is a product of the falsehood of the heart.

When I read in a recent post on FB about someone pointing into the direction of Oloye Adelabu Adebayo Penkelemesi as the most arrogant among all the candidates vying for governorship seat in Oyo state. I was taken aback, not for the insincerity that post itself represented as in the hasty conclusion by it's  author. I began to cross examine myself and asked where and when  was the most arrogant  candidate contest organised, for him to have given his verdict. I simply laughed off the  inanity.

The inventors of the arrogance tale, perhaps to impress their own pay masters have already inexorably fallen into a self indulging moral trap.

When I further probed what has Oloye Adelabu Adebayo Penkelemesi done or left undone to be given arrogant tag, they had nothing to say other than" he always revealed to the public how the jobs he created or the ones facilitated for people have rubbed off on the people of Oyo state". Not that alone, "he is too boastful of his academic excellence which he wears like a Laurel".

What a lame excuse. I am still wondering when has it become fashionable to be condemning anybody for not hiding what he has? Life itself is built on the pillars of a pecking order.  The inscription on the entrance of Plato's Academy readily comes to my mind "no one without a knowledge of Mathematics may enter here". In a simple analysis, we may be equally born, but not equally endowed.

It's imponderable that anybody can ever think that to avoid public broadsides, Oloye Adelabu Adebayo should lie about his degree or keep mum about the people he has gainfully employed. How does that add up? They said, he has a conceited profile, I asked them if it's the fault of a peacock for having long feathers that brandishes it's attractive colours? Academic excellence is a qualitative uniqueness that any man can hide only to offend his creator who has endowed him with such special gift. Oloye Adelabu Adebayo owes nobody apologies for bagging a first class, he is not, and can never be among the second best. Those who cares to know about what makes a difference should be prepared for the difference between Adelabu Adebayo Penkelemesi, the APC governorship candidate and the others.

It's a common knowledge that Oloye Adelabu Adebayo Penkelemesi holds both the old and the young in high esteem. This he does without being obsequious. Only those people who are classed by John Locke  for lacking the nous to distinguish truth from appearance will not know that Adelabu does not only strive to attain values, he creates values. He is humility personified.

Just imagine this. When Oloye Adelabu Adebayo was trying stenuously to open doors of employment to people in his private capacity, no one accused him of arrogance, now that he has to glorify God for a prayer answered as he was able to provide meals for over six hundred people in Oyo state, the social media trolls said he must be arrogant for mentioning it in a public debate. If they have a candidate that matches such feat, why did they flinch to push him or her forward?

Yes. He is confident. Oloye Adelabu never believed in impossibility. To him, there is no obstacle that can't be overcome. I once wrote to attest to his bullet proof courage which started right from his Secondary School days. What a pity it that those who are now bruiting about that he is arrogant are naively confusing confidence with arrogance. Will they be tutored or are they deliberate obtuse to knowing that arrogance is not excessive confidence, it's really lack of it.

The arm chair critics who said Oloye Adelabu Adebayo is not humble enough because they are expecting him to eat an humble pie, which he has openly rejected are the ones who are arrogant in every sense of the word.

Oloye Adelabu Adebayo is in politics to honour God and will never conceal the greatness of God in his life to please any mortal who can not alter what the immortal God has bestowed on him. This is never to be mistaken for arrogance.  Those who know him well will always stand up to defend this - Omo Penkelemesi is humble to a fault. Leave dirty politics and join the only available train to the Next level in Oyo state. O maa to penkele better.

Adelabu Promises to Construct Apete - Awotan Roads

Residents of Apete - Awotan axis were cheered up, upon hearing that their roads will be given priority in the next dispensation of the All Progressives Congress in Oyo State.

The APC Gubernatorial candidate in Oyo State, Oloye Bayo Adelabu on Monday made the pledge with the community leaders and youths presents at his campaign rally in Awotan that he will see to the availability of good road network for the residents of the Apete - Awotan axis.

He made this known while addressing the large crowd present at the rally in Awotan community. The leading figure in the Oyo State election was accompanied by some Nollywood stars, who were in attendance to grace the event and show their solidarity for the people's most preferred candidate - Bayo Adelabu Penkelemesi.

While speaking Oloye Bayo Adelabu Penkelemesi promises to improve on the physical infrastructure of the area while also reminding the people that he had previously showed his support by grading the roads for the people in the past. He reminded the people that his children attends Lifeforte International High School, in Awotan GRA, making sure that the development of the community will be part of his testimony for the 100 days in office.

He thereafter thanked the people for their invaluable support for him and the APC at large. He also grabbed the opportunity to elucidate them on the best approach to vote on the ballot paper, he adjured them to use their index finger to vote, to avoid nullification of votes by INEC. He then adviced them to go all out and vote for the APC in the February 16 and March 2nd election.

Oloye Bayo Adelabu, an Action - Taker

Who says having a first class is no big deal, should pray for a third class for his or her own children.

Adebayo Adelabu is a superior figure, not it's figure of speech. That, I can boldly attest to. Even in his secondary school days, he never settled for a good result or even "quite a good result', he live life on his own terms, one of which is to go for only "quite excellent" A physical symbol of the motto of his Alma mater #SemperOptimum".

One fact that those who are shouting  Adelabu is flaunting intellect failed to grapple with is that, he is an action oriented man who doesn't hide his intellectual virtue either. A sage says "the development of yourself to be an action taker, that's what will make a major difference". Even in social philosophy, there is what the Russian philosopher Nicolas Beedyaev called "the philosophy of inequality". In our local parlance, we call it "man pass man". What makes George Orwell in "Animal Farms" concludes that "All animals are equal, but some are more equal than the others". This is a divine wisdom that will remain uncommon ad infinitum.

Anything you have and keep hidden is a thing of little value, to borrow Beyonce, 'if you got it, twerk it". If first class is a "three for one dollar thing" how come Omo  Penkelemesi is the only candidate amongst others that have it? Why do we seem to be oblivious to what is obvious?

Before you argue that University grades only explain someone capacity to  do "agberu gbeso" or what educationist reffered to as 'capacity to remember taught concept", can they be reminded that Oloye Adebayo Adelabu did not just bagged first class, he is an A-list banker, A second to none technocrat, a fast thinker, A man with a bullet-proof confidence, a problem solver, a Primus inter pares. All these accorded him a first class in strategic thinking. He has proven beyond doubt that certificate alone is not what has enabled him to fill the success gap.

If he flaunts his academic prowess in a race where such feat is in a short supply, he is only stepping up the game. He is saying in other words that "Even among those that make a difference, there is still something that makes a difference. That's what makes a butterfly different from ordinary fly. Those who are in doubt should find out.

Adelabu Stormed Oke-Ogun in Grand Style; Adjured Residents to Keep Hope Alive

"Politics is the final and most perfect, which provides all that is needful for civilized life" - Thomas Aquinas.

It was a gale of unbridled excitement. A kind of innermost expression of joy one feels when catching a glimpse of a special person or a thing dear to one's heart. It was a memory that will linger for a long time as both the  influence and the influentia (to borrow Harrold Lasswell) in Oke-Ogun enthusiastically moved out to welcome the candidate after their heart, Oloye Bayo Adelabu Penkelemesi.

Not that the people of Oke-Ogun have not received other candidates coming one after the other to market their products. The triumphant entry of the campaign trail of the APC governorship candidate was unique both in style and strategy. People came out beaming natural smiles, a down-to-earth smile, not unctous type that greeted those who are loved by half. Implicit in this kind of show of affection is the popular acclamation of the alliance between Oloye Bayo Adelabu and the good people of Oke-Ogun. It was a true test of what they value most - Time and energy.  The reception was awesome from Iseyin to Ilero, Iganna, Otu and back to Iseyin where the APC NASS candidate, the sociable Shina peller received the team with a large crowd at what some people will call "unsocial hour" - past midnight.

The apparently elated Oyo state APC flagbearer waved intermittently at the jubilant crowd who trooped out shouting "O penkele, O jere". Without any modicum of doubt, the people of Oke Ogun are fully prepared for a journey into the Next level of advancement in governance.

Politics is not a solo operation, it's a two way thing. As Oloye Bayo Adelabu found his visit an auspicious time to interact with and engage the people to find out about the gaps to be filled to make their lives better, so did his cheery hosts maximize the moment by  opening their minds on what they desire from the government in the next level. The people seemed to have put their minds beyond the next election, they have considered that a done-deal. They were more concerned about stating policy agenda and demanding policy actions that would soon make them visible in Oke-Ogun. This is what Jorge Abache in a paper titled "Growing with the rest of the world" called "a deep heart to heart conversation between the citizens and the leaders to increase sustainable development effectiveness'. Therefore, it's not inappropriate to say that Bayo Adelabu visit to Oke-Ogun was not to solicit for only votes of the electorates, more than that, it was to broadly open a discussion and marshall out plans on how Oke-Ogun axis and Oyo state by extension will grow with the rest of the world.

The next port of call was Saki, then to Ago Are in Atisbo, Ago Amodu etc where, as usual, Sea of heads (no hyperbole meant) trooped out to welcome the Shakesperian "daylight spirit', our own Omo Penkelemesi.

Following that order, the third day took the campaign trail to Sepeteri, Igboho, Kisi and Igbeti. At Igbeti the candidate, who is a staunch Muslim joined other Muslim faithful to observe Jumat prayer where he was drenched with torrent of prayers after the Jumat service.

During the trip, no time was lost. Oloye Adelabu Adebayo ensured that they touched every nooks and crannies, paying homages to the traditional rulers for royal blessings and meeting party chieftains and the party teeming supporters across board.  It was simply a mission accomplished.
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The bonhomie attitude of Oloye Bayo Adelabu and the high reverence he held the low and the mighty that he met in Oke-Ogun was a further explication of his value politics which in the words of Merkl 'trumps power politics". He kept assuring people to keep hope alive. He however called for total support of both the elites and the mass to make the dream of moving Oyo state forward a reality. He averred  that" there is no obstacle a government that has the backing of the people will not overcome". But, he gave a caveat that, 'they too should be ready to buck the trend that modern governance system entails". Quoting Albert Einstein, he told the people that "every next level of your life will demand a different you". And they in turn nodded in acquiescence. No wonder our forefathers say 'Good men easily obtain what they desire, which is good."

Those people who followed the motorcade of Oloye Adelabu Adebayo from Ibadan  throughout the length and width of Oke Ogun asserted that there was no record of violence any where he went. It was all thrill and fun.

Going by the total success recorded in Oke-Ogun rallies, one can  begin to wonder if it was just a one-hit wonder compared to the unpleasant experience of the recent Ibarapa rally. The answer can not be far fetched. Nothing, the elders say, really  happens unless something is moved. This brought into sharp focus that the sad incidence of violence that happened in Igbo-Ora the other day Bayo Adelabu took his campaigns to Ibarapa was a case in isolation. The ugly incident was just a dark spot on a good day. It would be recalled that like angry storms from the north that throws up huge waves to disrupt the serenity and stillness of a calm sea, some hired political henchmen came to muddle the pool of the peaceful rally and threw the place into a turmoil in Igbo Ora, degenerating into frontal assault of the  teeming supporters of Bayo Adelabu, who only by Jove, himself left the scene unbruised.

Still talking about Oke-Ogun rally, when the writer sought to hear from the horses mouth, Oloye Bayo Adelabu without mincing words said "We thank almighty God for His infinite mercy upon us. The reception and acceptability was awesome.  it was not only in Saki as you referenced, same for all towns in Oke-Ogun.We have moved to Igboho to Kishi, just leaving Kishi now on our way to Igbeti. It was heartening news all over. God be praised".

Kudos to the peace loving people of Oke Ogun, the traditional rulers, religious leaders, various groups and others who made the visit of Oloye Adelabu Adebayo Penkelemesi a watershed. With your votes come March 2nd, By God's grace, next level is guaranteed.

Adelabu, Apostle of Peace - FOBA

Our attention has been drawn to a spurious request by ‘Handshake Campaign Organisation' on behalf of the gubernatorial candidate of African Democratic Congress (ADC), Senator Olufemi Lanlehin calling for the immediate arrest of Chief Adebayo Adelabu over the unfortunate incident that took place on Saturday, March 2, 2019 during a campaign rally at Igbo Ora.

While we don’t consider it appropriate to trade words over the loss of innocent lives, we consider it expedient to put the record straight in order not to allow some opportunistic politicians, desperate for votes, to take undue advantage of.

The incident at Igbo Ora was not the making of Chief Adelabu and it is wicked for anyone to link him directly or indirectly to the death of those who lost their lives.

From every indication, Chief Adelabu was the target of attack by those who orchestrated the unfortunate incident, which left several members of APC sustaining various degrees of injury.

But for providence two assailants who made spirited attempt to harm Chief Adelabu would have succeeded and if they had, only God knows what those calling for his arrest would be saying now.

How would Chief Adelabu as the chairman of Oyo State Security Trust Fund and who has invested his resources, energy and time to ensure that the state enjoys peace in the last two years turn around to promote violence?

It is on record that the APC gubernatorial hopeful has run the most organised, most visible and most robust campaign out of all the candidates for this year’s election.

This is attested to by the numerous roadshows that he has undertaken, which have been widely accepted by the good people of Oyo State.

Chief Adelabu had condemned the recourse to violence and he has called on the Oyo State Police Commissioner and the state government to ensure adequate security protection for all the candidates standing for the elections.

We seize this opportunity to call on the Police high command to carry out diligent investigation into the incident at Igbo Ora, the attack on Engr. Oluseyi Makinde of the Peoples Democratic (PDP) at Ojoo area of Ibadan and the stoning of our candidate’s campaign train at Moniya on Monday.

We call on the ADC and its co-travelers to look elsewhere for the justification of their imminent failure in the March 2 gubernatorial election in Oyo State.

Signed:
Dr. Bayo Busari
For: Friends of Bayo Adelabu (FOBA)

Who is afraid of Bayo Adelabu? By Kehinde Isiaka

The meteoric rise of Oloye Bayo Adelabu in Oyo state politics is fast causing some members of the opposition what is known in medical lingo as "ataraxy". Let me for the sake of this piece call it "political ataraxy"

When I read a petition allegedly written by the one 'handshake campaign organization" calling for the immediate arrest of the governorship candidate of APC in Oyo state, Oloye Bayo Adelabu, I need no more evidence to read the bold letters of self-defeatism of the group who claimed to be acting in "loco parentis" for the ADC party governorship candidate. The next thing on my mind is the title of KC Bokadia film released in 2015. Wonder what the title is? *Dirty politics".

In what reminds one of a despicable "Bo ba o pa' (creep up to him and kill) style of political desperadoes of past, the estranging view of politics as a dirty game is one thing I found too confounding to ever imagine will play out at this time in our own pacesetter state.

Those who drafted the petition, craftily masked their real intent from it's beginning, they finally and unwittingly couldn't hide till the end. They can only be clever by half. Read the final paragraph of their putrid missive, that fits into what Immanuel Kant categorised as "empty as thoughts without content" and you will easily discover the blindspots in the poorly worded attack. Call it a fundamental assault on morality and you will not be too far from the answer.

At a time when the political community world over, is upping the game with issue based campaigns, the "litigants" here are ensconced in poisoning the political environment by resorting to blackening of another candidate's reputation to score a cheap political goal. Can someone tell the "handshake campaign organization" that their handshake is moving beyond a shoulder? They harried the police with flurry of petitions when Omo Penkelemesi is, is fast becoming unstoppable!

When they couldn't match Adelabu's hard-nosed political strategy which has made him a candidate to beat, who is by all indices building up an impregnable lead among all the candidates, they now take to cheap blackmail. They inveighed against him through petition writing as an alternative. A jarring defeat is staring them at the face, they are deliberately obtuse, they have lost the strength in the fist, now employing fury.  Tell them, omo Penkelemesi is indestructible.

Carelessly, they let open the lid of their cesspool to foul the air, unbeknown to them, the electorates are impervious to bad political odours. The "hand shakers" are demanding for immediate arrest of Adelabu for "his culpability in the deaths and injury of several person on his campaign train". They claimed without giving any clue, that the people's choice who can not hurt a fly is keeping in his trail "thugs armed to the teeth with sophisticated weapons". In their circular reasoning, a man who want to heal his state must start by killing his people first. Check out those hands before you shake them, they must be full of germs.  Shakespeare must have predicted that a society will one day harbour some people with a killer handshake before he warned that "there is dagger in men's smile".

The evil petitioners are obviously stunned by the popular support given to Adelabu wherever he goes. They are envious of the mammoth crowd that troop out in droves to show love to the one they believe loves them back. The belly-aching politicians  now want to hang Adelabu by half before the election by given him a bad name. Has it not been said that "he that is given a bad name is half -hanged'. You have failed! Try another gymicks. Stop this wakefulness that wakes into nothing.

Very soon, mark my words, the hunters will turn to the hunted. Questions will inevitably arise as to the identity of the "mark men" they were referring to in their petition to the IG. He that asserts must prove. They must be deluding themselves if they ever think that their flam to besmirch Adelabu's reputation will fly. At the end, they will be clobbered for misinforming the police and the public by extension.

In their last line, a fallacy that shows the underbelly of their evil intent, they cried out for" rejection of Adelabu in the coming poll and by extension his party". I just smiled loftly reading through the cloak and dagger story and, truly yours, I couldn't help but recommend to them a tranquilizer called "atarax" as a cure for their advanced stage "political ataraxy". May you all be healed to witness the Next level of advancement that omo Penkelemesi is bringing to  the people of Oyo state.

Political Violence in Ibarapa and the Dignity of an Outlaw-State By Isiaka Kehinde

"Elections in Nigeria remain transitory because of the pervasive violence that drives competitive politics in the country and violence seems to represent the ultimate source of acquiring power' - Derric Maw.

In what is known as Hobbessian state of nature, what ruled was self preservation. There was a total absence of social order and social progress was an abberation. There was nothing like moral values that can be applied within the context of the larger society. The explication of this period was best captured by John Rawl as "Outlaw-State' where violence was more of a rule than exception. A survival of the fittest and the mightiest.

As people progressed to a modern world,  they moved to a level of social development, a social system underguirded by the cooperation of the common goal of members of a society through balancing of conflict of interest among individuals and the state. It provides the necessary condition for the attachment of a happy life which Aristotle referred to as the highest good "the sumum bonum"

It is therefore implausible to think that anyone who is lucky to be a product of a well ordered modern society would ever think of regressing into the state of nature when life was hellish and brutish. But where have we found ourselves again in Oyo state after having heaved a sigh of relief that we have overcome the 'locust years"? With the coming into power of Senator Abiola Ajimobi, Oyo state appeared to have sloughed off the burden of violence and social disorder, which used to be the only order in the subversive regimes of the previous administration. We approached the turnabout with a liberal turn of mind. To the people Oyo State, violence was dead and interred with it's bones. Was it properly buried?  We never thought it would rebounce like a proverbial Phoenix until recent events called our attention to the legs of the corpse, we thought was buried now sprouting out in the open.

In the midst of adversity, the worst misfortune for a being is to remember that he has once been happy. This captured the feelings of the peace loving people of Igbo Ora yesterday as the sad memory of the one - day, one - trouble of the previous administration in Oyo state was reenacted. People hardly believed that a colourful political rally could turned out to cast a pall  of distress in their land. One can imagine how the residents would tremble hearing the sporadic gunshots from the hired  agents of evils who instead of adding fun to their thrills came as a kill joy to blight their day.

The event that started on a friendly note was soon to be shattered by the hoodlums that operated in the open without pretension of wearing a hood. If they are a kill joy, they must be a dare devil, the inveterate haters of social peace and harmony.

Their unmasked faces exposed their identities as having been a willing tool before now to a set of ignoble class of political class typified by Karl Max as "turning political power to an organised power of oppression". These are the people to whom political immorality is more of a norm than an exception.

The worst scenario was the presence of Governor Ajimobi and the governorship candidate of APC at the rally. Both men are strong advocates of politics without bitterness. They wear the serenity that pervaded Ajimobi's reign as an eppaullete on their shoulder. Hardly could they imagine some people are hell-bent on robbing them of that shine before the next election and undercut the self determination of the Koseleri governor to make peace and progress a permanent feature in the state. Therefore, for some inscrutable reasons but clearly political vendetta, the hoodlums struck again. And the effect was unseemly fatal.

The rogue elements obviously acting their script well, allowed the APC governorship candidate, Oloye Bayo Adelabu to finish his speech and reaffirmed the commitment of the present administration to social development and common good. Unbeknown to him, the devil's advocate were lurking around to bare their fangs of terror. They made no bone about their devilish intent to attack him. They rushed towards his side and only by sheer providence the security men straggled him away from the crowd and wished him inside the awaiting car for safety. It must be the scariest moment for the young candidate who by mere optics of his gentle frame can't touch violence with a long pole.

Perhaps out of angst that their mission was unaccomplished, they opened fire on anything at sight to cow the residence. They made no mistakes about who their targets were and desperately searching for whoever carried any emblem of APC. They aimed, they maimed and turned the peaceful town to a theatre of war. By their act the Savage beasts have shown the world that the extreme violence of Rawls "outlaw state" was noble. 

Violence can never settle anything right. Recognition of the value of humanity is conterminous with appreciation of individual dignity. This is because it is only in a state of social order that an individual can realize his goals and for the society to flourish. A moral that is evidently lost on the hired thugs and their shameless agents. Never again must Oyo state rolled back into a state of anomie. Oyo state people must vote against violence and take the pace setter state to the progressive next level that will guarantee abundant life and prosperity for all.

On 21st of February, 2007, the first Nigerian moral leaders forum was held for peaceful Elections. The overreaching objective of the conference was to sensitise Nigerians towards having a peaceful and violent free Elections in Nigeria in 2007. We all went to the conference with a red band with the clear message "shun electoral message" If in the wake of 2019 Elections, we are still bothered about and witnessing politically motivated violence in Oyo state, the question as usual is "Have we learnt any lesson"?

Adelabu Escapes Attack by a Whisker, Several Injured as PDP Thugs Disrupt APC Rally in Igbo-Ora

In what appeared like the reenactment of the feisty days of PDP, some identified PDP roughnecks today caused a stir at the campaign rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC), at Igbo-ora, Ibarapa Local Government Area.

The untoward event occurred barely after  the APC Guber hopeful, Oloye Bayo Adelabu finished addressing a capacity crowd of supporters who were apparently in upbeat mood to receive the candidate and his campaign train in the sleepy town.

Shortly after the address by the duo of the Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi and the party governorship candidate, Oloye Bayo Adelabu, some stern looking PDP hatchet men were poised to attack the gubernatorial candidate of APC, Bayo Adelabu wielding dangerous weapons as they advanced to his direction to unleash attack on him.  According to the eye witnesses, it took the proactive efforts of the security men to hurriedly whisked Adelabu away to the nearest vehicle for protection.

The eye witnesses said, no sooner had Oloye Bayo Adelabu been moved out of the hotspot that the thugs ferociously pounced on the unsuspecting members of the ruling party with dangerous weapons. This left a lot of people critically injured while others sustained heavy bruises as they were struggling to run for safety.

The hoodlums, we gathered, later had a field day shooting sporadically into the thin air to scare the residents as they kept hounding anyone in sight putting on APC branded shirts.

The peace loving people of Igbo Ora who had not witnessed this level of hostility after the era of PDP were said to be visibly shakened as they were heard crying aloud condemning the dastardly act.

BBC Oyo Guber Debate and the Golden Opportunity Akala Missed By Isiaka Kehinde

'if an election is simply a one day snapshot of transient mass delusions, then democracy is not a very noble form of government". - James Bovard.

In dealing with people, a leader who has tasted the pie of leadership first is always considered to have made what Keats referred to as "a heard Melody which is very sweet". Sweeter still, are the unheard melodies. Explainably, If you did well as a governor, people still have the notion that another person, given equal opportunity, may still do better. On the other hand, If you tell them you want to emend some errors made while in office, they will remind you of WS who says "when corrections lie in the hands of those who committed the error, to whom are we complaining?". The only message that makes some sense to the people in this kind of circumstance, is telling them convincingly what you can do differently.

One fact that we can't controvert is that reality is relative to scheme. What count as real in one system may not be in another.  It's for this reason that whoever seeks a second chance to make a first impression in a political environment has to be prepared to answer thorny questions - Former Governor Alao Akala on my mind.

One strong weapon that Gov Akala apparently banked on to sweep the carpet off other candidates is his experience as a former Governor. That probably explained why he found answers to some of the questions thrown to him using the past relatives "When I was, I did". To me this amount to a misjudgement of common perspective. The listeners are not waiting for seekers of a new mandate to over-theorised his past exploits. The general belief is that the strongest yesterday may not be strong enough today, the reason why the search for a political leader is said to be  "an unending quest"

The former Governor did well by telling the public some of his selling points in his first term which he quite obliviated about to his advantage. But he didn't see any further need to tell us in parenthetical details the novelty he can bring to the system. And that is the unforced error.

In today's world, as the Americans say, only agile leaders beat the competition. In this context, agility is defined by the ingenuity of the leaders to innovate, renovate and be some miles away from others. What, in other words is called "keeping up with the Joneses". In modern system, old formular may not solve a new equation. This moral is probably lost on the former Governor.

To deny the purpose of thinking is to block the road of enquiry. If someone simply assured you that he will do something because he has done it before, he has robbed the listeners the right of asking "how differently". Everything in life obeys the natural law of change. A pragmatic      listener will refer all thinking, all reflections to consequences and final test. The final test is the rationality. What Satre called "filtering the knowledge of the world through the principle outside the world. I doubt if former Governor Akala prepared for that as accentuated in today's debate.

For instance, One of the pertinent issues raised by Adelabu Adebayo of APC bothers on the imperative of maintaining peace and social order as a recipe for social progress  and how previous administration before Ajimobi unabashedly embraced disorderliness thereby muddling the pool of the social contract they signed with the citizens. Even if the former Governor tried to change the fiesty days story by force, the listeners are more recondite to have forgotten so soon how their daily activities were interrupted with sporadic gunshots and unbridled display of rascality during that era. By all measure, Governor Akala's administration, was far from being sackless. This is too obvious for a new emphasis.

Talking of the duo of Senator Lanlehin of ADC and Princess Bola Sarumi of NIP, they merely used the occasion to tell the audience what they felt people wanted to hear. They said too little to convince majority of the listeners that they have a get-up and go mentality that modern governance system demands. The  moderator, who apparently was not fully in charge, did little to grill his priced guests on their ability and capability. She apparently only used them to do a test-run of how to handle such task in future.

However, Oloye Adelabu Adebayo, made a difference. He did not come to impress anybody. Through his well articulated delivery one could easily decipher his unflagging zeal and determination to accelerate the pace of governance in Oyo state. He didn't only tell the listeners what he planned on paper, he explained in details, how the plans would be giving life on ground. He put into perspective his svelte vision for making Oyo state the economy-hub of the SW in no distant future. He also pinpointed how he has been taking care of the less privileged through his Bayo Adelabu Foundation and how he will re-erect the social system in a way that will favour both dorminant and disadvantaged group when voted into power. On improving IGR, he stated that  his over twenty six years life has been devoted to generating money, thus it would be easy to replicate the magic formular in driving Oyo state to the next prosperous level. No wonder why others were building their castles in Spain during the interactive session, he just smiled and said "enu dun rofo"- it's a simple task to prepare vegetable soup by words of mouth.

Even when someone among the audience who probably could not differentiate policemen and the ordinary people in campaign train wrongfully accused him  of allowing gun wielding civilians to follow him, he never lost his temper, he only dismissed the unfounded allegation and later enlightened the person why he has never and will never support any act of violence because he is a man of peace.

All told, Oloye Adelabu Adebayo has a family name dearer to his heart, he can be trusted never to do what will drag the name in the mud. He repeated this oft times  during the debate. People trust him.