By Ayodele Oni

Aides to former Minister of Interior and that of immediate past Governor of Osun State are trading words over the rise to political stardom of Rauf Aregbesola and President Bola Tinubu.

Media aide to Rauf Aregbesola, Sola Fasure, claimed that it was the pivotal role Aregbesola played that made Tinubu the Governor of Lagos State in 1999.

However, former Special Adviser to ex-Osun Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, Jamiu Olawumi, dismissed Fasure’s claims as false.

“Aregbesola was nothing when he met Tinubu. Tinubu contested for the Senate and won, but Aregbesola contested for the House of Representatives and lost.”

Fasure stated that Aregbesola’s influence helped straighten Tinubu’s political journey, first securing him a Senate seat for Lagos West, and later ensuring his victory as Governor.

Speaking on a current affairs programme “Frank Talk” on Rave FM, Osogbo, Fasure asserted that Tinubu’ s political rise would not have been possible without Aregbesola’s strategic support.

“The relationship between Tinubu and Aregbesola is mutually beneficial. Aregbesola was the one who made Asiwaju Tinubu a Senator in 1991.

“When Tinubu retired from Mobil Oil and joined politics, it was Aregbesola he ran to. At that time, Aregbesola was already an established politician in Lagos, and he helped Tinubu secure the SDP ticket for Lagos West Senate.”

Fasure further claimed that when Tinubu sought to become governor, Aregbesola was instrumental in securing the Alliance for Democracy (AD) ticket for him, despite opposition from Afenifere leaders who preferred Funso Williams.

“It was Aregbesola who overturned that decision and helped Tinubu win the election.”

Speaking further, the Special adviser to the Governor alleged that Aregbesola later turned against Tinubu and the APC, shifting his allegiance to the PDP and Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke.

“The exit of Aregbesola and his cohort is goodbye to bad rubbish. We are not going to miss them,” Olawumi declared.

By Adesina Soyooye

Joe Igbokwe, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Lagos chapter, has lamented the untidy relationship between some APC chieftains and the Party. By extension, Igbokwe, a former Special Assistant to Lagos State Governor hints on the untidy relationship between them and President Bola Tinubu.

Igbokwe says mere seeing them and/or hearing that they are meeting with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar makes him sick; makes him want to throw up; frustrates him.

Specifically, he mentioned Dr Kayode Fayemi, a two-term APC  Governor of Ekiti State. Kayode was thought to be very close to Bola Tinubu, until he declared his interest in running for the office of the President in 2023, even when Tinubu had already declared interest. Ironically, not a few people attribute Fayemi’s victory  in the Ekiti Governorship polls, especially, his first term, to Tinubu.

The other person he mentioned is Chibuike Amaechi.

Amaechi was a two-term Governor of Rivers State under the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, who inexplicably defected to the APC in the few final months of his second term. Thereafter, he was appointed the Director General of then General Muhammadu Buhari’s Presidential Campaign Council. He joined Tinubu as a founding member of the APC, the Party which swept  the PDP out of office at the National level. However, again, he, inexplicably, threw his hat into the Presidential race in 2023, knowing fully well that Tinubu, who they all referred to as the Leader of the APC was running for the same office. It was no surprise that he was roundly defeated even though he was the first runner-up.

The next person Igbokwe mentioned is Dr. Rabiu Kwankwaso, two-term Governor of Kano State under the PDP. He, too, dumped the Party for the APC, returned to it later, left again to help found the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP. He contested for the Presidency against Tinubu under his NNPP, but came a very distant fourth behind Tinubu, Atiku and Peter Obi.

The most surprising name in the pack is Rauf Aregbesola. The man, a two-term Governor of Osun State under the APC, was not only the Commissioner for Works in Lagos State under   the Governorship of Tinubu, but Tinubu was instrumental to his becoming the Governor of Osun State, as well as becoming a Minister under the Buhari Government. But they fell apart over Aregbesola’s successor, now Minister for Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola. It was so bad that Aregbesola, who, before then, was Tinubu’s eyes and ears, politically,  publicly put curses on Tinubu.

Now, it is these four people, all former Governors, all either APC  current or former staunch members, that Igbokwe says make him want to throw up when he sees who their associate is  now – Atiku Abubakar.

For the records, Atiku was in their camp before. All of them, except Aregbesola, were in same political party – PDP, and connived to dump  it for the APC.

According to Igbokwe, these four men have been associating with Atiku, meeting with him, probably, against 2027, in order to stop Tinubu’s second term. Igbokwe thinks they are forming a coalition to stop Tinubu in 2027. And he wants them to not only stop, but to return, fully, to the APC. He is frustrated by the mere thought that they are meeting with Atiku, the man who challenged Tinubu for the office of the President and criticizes every of Tinubu’s action.

So in the post, Igbokwe wrote, especially for the attention of APC faithful: “Good morning everyone, especially, our APC faithful supporters across Nigeria. I want HE Amaechi, HE Fayemi, HE Aregbesola, HE Kwankwaso, and others to move back to APC. Seeing them in Atiku’s camp makes me want to vomit.”

Igbokwe has not been offered any position since Tinubu’s tenure as President.