As the Osun State governorship election draws closer by the day, the protracted feud between the incumbent governor, the unassuming Alhaji Isiaka Adegboyega Oyetola, and his predecessor, ebullient Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, must by now be of serious concern, not only to stakeholders in the Osun project but also to all lovers of good governance generally.
Before proceeding further, it is important for me to mention that this issue has been a source of worry to me such that l had once summoned courage to talk to the two leaders about the whole issue. It’s equally important to emphasise that, beyond my relationships with these two progressive leaders, what mainly prompted me to raise the issue with them then was my concern about the foreseeable setback that would befall Osun, should the frosty relationship between them be allowed to degenerate into a situation whereby Osun would fall into the hands of opposition PDP (God forbid), a party that has nothing to offer the state save progress retardation. Progress retardation is here used consciously because the history of PDP in Osun is that of non-performance, egregiously inept leadership and imposition of massive poverty and underdevelopment on the state.
Much as this writer is not interested in comparing the PDP era in Osun with the Aregbesola era, it’s not disputable that Aregbesola changed the Osun narrative from underdevelopment – as witnessed under the PDP – to that of unprecedented development. Save a few mistakes that put a stain on the white garment of his administration, Aregbesola lifted Osun from development backwaters, no doubt. So, for me, the mistakes that characterised Aregbesola’s administration should be seen within the context of the frailty of man rather than being seen as intentional. We are all humans and no one but our Creator is perfect.
Just like Governor Oyetola who took over from him, Aregbesola no doubt had good intentions for the state but in life things sometimes do not go according to plan wholly. For a leader, the important thing is to be able to record appreciable achievements within the time he or she is in the saddle and I sincerely think Ogbeni deserves a pass mark in this respect.
Gov. Oyetola, on his part, has been a fantastic leader. Like people are saying in Osun no one had expected he would be able to deliver due to the situation he met on ground. But he has hitherto swung surprise and did the extraordinary. Not only has he continued from where Ogbeni stopped, he has lifted Osun beyond where Ogbeni left it even in spite of meager resources available to him.
Undoubtedly Gov. Oyetola is springing surprises in Osun. Under him, payment of the new minimum wage to workers, full payment of salaries to all categories of workers and also payment of pension arrears and continuous payment of pensions have not affected development in the other sectors, in spite of the unpalatable financial situation of the state. This is the reason Osun people call him miracle worker. But for paucity of funds, development under Oyetola would have been faster than it is.
From the foregoing, it is clear that Ogbeni and Oyetola are progressive leaders who cherish progress and development for their people. But in life, no matter how close or friendly two people are, there may come a time in the course of their relationship that things can go awry between them. If it happens, it doesn’t mean it will or should continue like that for ever. It shouldn’t be allowed to turn to that of God and Lucifer whose quarrel has become eternally irreconcilable. This is why people of conscience must wade into the matter now to ensure that the issue is settled.
My observation in this whole scenario so far is that the trouble isn’t so much with these two progressive leaders. The trouble is more with us their followers. Of course some of us have turned ourselves to conflict entrepreneurs that are interested in continually fanning the embers of discord between these two brothers mainly for our own selfish interests, forgetting that when two elephants fight, it’s the grass that suffers. And we need to remind ourselves here that it was the conflict entrepreneurs, not the principal actors, that escalated the 1962 schism in the Action Group (AG) with disastrous consequences, which the entire Yoruba race is still paying for till today.
My long-standing relationships with these two leaders puts me in a better position to make certain factual statements about them. Gov. Oyetola is a gentleman to the core and he cherishes peace much. He’s a man of pacific inclination and hardly can he hurt a fly. Ogbeni Aregbesola, on the other hand, though of radical inclination, is also nonetheless peace-loving. His love for war doesn’t go beyond ordinary word of mouth.
Osun has witnessed unprecedented development under both of them , therefore, we cannot afford to slip backward again. This is why, as a stakeholder, this writer is much interested in appealing to the two of them to sheathe their swords and then appeal to their followers to give peace a chance. I sincerely feel we should not go to the polls with a divided house. For divided we fall, united we stand. We all must remember that ‘when two brothers engage in a duel onto death, it’s strangers that will inherit their father’s property’. Continuity is a decideratum in Osun.
Long live the state of Osun!
•Kola Odepeju writes via [email protected]