Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
As the the All Progressives Congress (APC) is set to conduct its primary for its governorship candidate on Saturday in Osun State, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has sought for the recall of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila as well as the sack of the Minister of Interior,. Rauf Aregbesola over the roles in the lingering crisis rocking the Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
They also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately relieve Aregbesola of his ministerial position for leading a faction in the APC as against the party’s virtues and ethos.
The students made their position knwown In a statement on Friday by the Coordinator, NANS Southwest (Zone D), Adegboyega Emmanuel Olatunji.
He warned that the democracy, which was jointly fought for by well-meaning Nigerians including members of NANS, is at risk should this type of trend is allowed to dominate its landscape.
According to him, “The organisation has observed the embarrassing feud between Mr Rauf Aregbesola and Mr Bola Tinubu in their political tussle in Osun state. The embarrassment becomes a concern for us only because the supposed Minister of Interior who should be busy with managing the internal security of the country in the face of tense insecurity is busy mobilising the security agencies under his ministry for selfish political interests.
“The shameful manner in which the minister has continued to mobilise the security agencies in a gangster style to advance his political interest in Osun state has called for national concern and deserve a tough sanction.
“Unfortunately, the National Assembly which ought to play a monitoring role and ensure service delivery from all ministries is filled up of politicians with backward reasoning and prebendal politics. It would occur to us as a shock that the Federal House of Representatives under Gbajabiamila has reduced the Green Chamber to a political tools in the service of his godfather, Mr Tinubu.
“Suffice to say that the recent launch of 165billion naira stolen fund probe of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) which is under the Ministry headed by Aregbesola is motivated by Gbajabiamila to fight back Aregbesola for standing in the way of his godfather. If there is any fact Nigerians must come to term with, it is that the Federal House of Representative under the leadership of Gbajabiamila is an accomplice in the fraud.
“It reveals to us that the Green Chamber leadership was aware of this stolen fund but decided to keep quiet. And this has raised our suspicion that there are possible other fraudulent activities which is known to the House of Representatives but intentionally overlooked or covered up.
“This is therefore a robbery of the Nigerian people and the nation. And we consider it necessary that all parties involved in the cover up and the eventual whistleblowing are culprits in the probe they want to carry out and deserved to be liable for same under the law. This therefore means that the House Of Representative under Gbajabiamila lacks the credibility to probe Ministry of Interior but should be probed along.
“It is important for the Nigerian people to understand the politics being played and carefully choose the side to belong. Nigerians are enjoined to avoid getting involved in the intra caucus war as none of the party means well for the nation apparently.
“We do not build fallacy that the House of Representatives will come out with any pro-people report from the probe since it is politically motivated against the people to the service of their sponsor.
“It is expected that the President would relieve Aregbesola of his ministerial position since he has prioritised his political interest in Osun above service to the Nigerian people.
“And in response, Gbajabiamila and all other stooges in the Green Chamber involved in this selfishly motivated probe be called back by their constituents for conspiracy against the country”.