OSUN 2014: Ogunwale defects to APC

Ahead the conduct of August 9 governorship poll in Osun State, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the state, Senator Felix Ogunwale, at the weekend ,defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC), just as he declared his   support for the re-election of Governor Rauf Aregbesola.

Speaking during a chat with journalists on Saturday, during his official defection  with hundreds of his supporters in Iragbiji,  Ogunwale, said he was backing Aregbesola, considering many infrastructural developments his administration had  brought to the state.

The Iragbiji -born politician, who represented Osun Central at the Senate between 2003 and 2007, contended that “what Osun State is witnessing now is unprecedented in its history, hence, the need for all hands to be on deck in ensuring continuity of the good work.”

According to him, “what is happening in Osun is what everybody can see physically. If we want these developments to continue, we must vote for Aregbesola so that he can complete the good work he has started”

However, while reacting to the defection of Ogunwale, Mr Diran Odeyemi, who is the director of media and strategy for the PDP’s governorship candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore ,said “his defection is a good riddance to bad rubbish because he has been a terrible burden to our party.”

He contended that “when he was in the Senate on the platform of the PDP, he was a huge disappointment due to his gross failure to implement any meaningful project, capable of making a difference in the lives of the people in his constituency”.

“If we have our way, we would have organised a send forth for him. God has been assisting us in separating the chaff from the wheat so that the real team of dedicated party members in the rescue mission to free Osun people from mystery and frustration foisted by the APC would coast home to victory on  Augus,9“, Odeyemi said.

Distribution of 66,000 litres of kerosene not to induce voters—Kashamu

The chairman of Omoilu Foundation, Prince Buruji Kashamu, on Sunday, in Osogbo,  said the distribution of 66,000 litres of kerosene by his foundation was  not meant to induce voters ahead of August 9 governorship election.

Kashamu, who spoke in Ede  through the Managing Director of the Foundation, Mr Samson Onasile, affirmed that this gesture was targeted at assisting the people with a view to bringing succour to them, saying this “does not have any political colouration.

He disclosed that additional  66,000 litres of kerosine would arrive in Osogbo this week for further distribution to the people, regardless of their ethnic and political affiliations.

According to him, “our  group does not have any fraudulent plan which could  disenfranchise voters in Osun State contrary to the claim of   theAll Progressives Congress (APC), stressing that politicians started making overtures to the  Foundation having realised that members of the foundation  ,who were benefitting from  the magnanimity of Kashamu  had electoral values.”

“The Omoilu Foundation gave out 750 vehicles and 1000 motorcycles in 2006. The chairman  ,at times, distributes recharge  cards to members without asking them to do anything for him. We are distributing kerosene today to assist our members in Osun State,” Kashamu stated.

According to him, residents of Ondo State and other states which are not preparing for elections are also registering to become members of Omoilu Foundation.

Kashamu continued, “we have registered over 140,000 members for Omoilu Foundation in Osun State as of today and many are still obtaining our forms.

We are distributing 66,000 litres today and before Tuesday additional 66,000 would arrive for distribution.  The kegs for the kerosine is branded PDP of course and the chairman is a leader of the PDP and would work for the interest of the party.

PDP tackles Aregbesola on mega schools •PDP is ignorant — Govt

Osun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ,on Sunday ,tackled Governor Rauf Aregbesola, for allegedly expending Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) funds to construct mega schools, which they claimed the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led state government have been brandishing as achievements during electioneering campaigns.

The party also tasked the newly appointed Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau ,to publish the report of the inspection team that visited sites of projects executed with funds from UBEC in Osun State.

In a statement signed by the director of media and strategy of the PDP’s campaign committee in Osun State, Mr Diran Odeyemi, hinted that “credible information available indicated that there were shocking discoveries by UBEC officials during inspection of school projects, which  Aregbesola’s claimed were implemented with huge yearly allotment from the UBEC”.

The statement reads in part, “UBEC officials from Abuja, were shocked when officials of Osun State government took them to the mega schools Aregbesola  has been claiming his administration built as UBE projects on which the grants running into several billions of naira had been committed”.

But, reacting to the position of the PDP, the state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Sunday Akere said “there is no secret or doubt about how Osun expended UBEC funds. It is only the PDP that are trying to be mischievous and distractive. Osun collected loan from the Sukuk for the purpose of financing the construction of high schools and not elementary and middle schools”.

He continued, “our part funding of UBEC was used for the building of our elementary and middle schools and this can be seen on the signposts erected on these schools. You can go to AUD Isale Osun, in Osogbo and Elementary School, Ilare, in Ile-Ife, you will see clearly there that they are funded by Osun and UBEC. The position of the PDP is probably out of ignorance or lack of knowledge”.

NSCDC to deploy new security measures

The Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, (NSCDC), Dr Ade Abolurin, at the weekend, disclosed that the corps had perfected new measures aimed at guaranteeing effective security for voters and people of Osun State during the August 9 governorship poll.

He posited that the new measures, which would be different from the strategies adopted on June 21, when the governorship election in Ekiti was held would go a long way in ensuring peaceful conduct of the exercise.

Abolurin, who gave these hints during a chat with with newsmen in Osogbo at the state command of the NSCDC, maintained that part of the new measures include among others, effective manning of each polling booth by not more than two officials, adding that we want to guard against creating fear among the eligible voters.

While emphasising that the details of the new measures would be jealously guided by the corps, considering security reasons, the NSCDC boss, who also addressed men and officers from all parts of Osun command, underscored the need for them to exhibit high level of professionalism and discipline during the conduct of the poll.

Aboluring assured that the command would not condone any act of violence, pointing out that men and officers that would be deployed during the election would be civic and proactive without compromising their duties.

According to him, “necessary security measures will be taken by the NSCDC to avoid breach of peace by politicians during and after the election. NSCDC is prepared for the task of ensuring security in the state and every other parts of the country.”

“Officers of the NSCDC would rely on members of the public for necessary information to ensure adequate security of lives and properties of the residents of the state during the election. We need cooperation of politicians and electorate in the state for smooth conduct of the governorship poll and to secure lives and properties”, Abolurin asserted.

He, however, counselled politicians to eschew violence by promoting peace, adding that the interest of Osun State should be paramount to all stakeholders irrespective of political inclinations.

IG must investigate kidnap of members in Ede –SDP

Osun State chapter of Social Democratic Party (SDP), has called on the Inspector-General of Police (IG), Muhammed Dahiru Abubakar, to investigate the circumstances leading to the kidnap of three of its members at the weekend.

The state party chairman, Mr Ademola Isola, in a statement in Osogbo, expressed concern over the incident, calling on all security agencies to be on the watch as the August 9 governorship election approaches.

He disclosed that the affected SDP members, in Ede-North Local Government, Alhaji Adewimbi Kadiri, Mrs Titilayo Alaanu and Mrs Musili Usman, were abducted during their house-to-house campaign at Alusekere ward of Ede, on Saturday.

According to him, the SPD members were forcefully taken away by a politician in the state.

“Four of our members in Ede were just going around campaigning and telling the people about SDP and our manifesto. They were educating the masses on how to vote on August 9.

“Suddenly, some people just swooped on them and forcefully abducted three of them with two women, while one escaped. This was done without any justification, because our members across the state are peaceful.

“It was our member who escaped that quickly raised the alarm that his colleagues have been kidnapped.

“This led to some prominent Ede indigenes calling on the State Commissioner of Police to act swiftly to avoid bloodshed.