Apart from the list of Governor Seyi Makinde’s preferred gubernatorial and Senatorial Candidates, which the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, our Dear Pastor Olanrewaju, feebly attempted to deny yesterday, the other story which took over the social and regular Media platforms was the massive dumping of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and the jumping into the Allied People’s Movement, APM by loyalists of Governor Seyi Makinde.
I was watching a Nollywood movie this morning and that Nollywood Star, who is notorious for her roles as a witch in Yoruba Nollywood, ” Abeni Agbon” said something about the goat and cassava “.
It’s a Yoruba proverb. If you tie down a goat, you definitely must provide cassava for the goat to eat. ( Eni to mu ewure so mole, o ni lati fun eran ni paki).
” Paki”, is the Yoruba word for cassava.
Very interesting indeed.
According to Media reports, Governor Seyi Makinde has finalized arrangements with the Leadership of the APM and his followers have been trickling into the party since yesterday.
The logo of the APM is cassava , “paki” in Yoruba.
Sometimes ago, I wrote a story where I said that only zombies would take Governor Makinde serious when he said that he had lifted the embargo he was being accused of placing on the declaration of political intentions to contest for public offices in the PDP.
On that occasion, he boldly told interested aspirants to erect Billboards with the PDP logo.
ALSO READ: Governor Seyi Makinde: The Emperor And A Crumbling Babylon | By Sola Abegunde
Surprisingly, many of his followers complied with the instructions of the Governor and within 48 hours, everywhere within the state were filled with the Billboards of PDP aspirants.
Why did I think it was illogical for anyone to comply with the Governor’s directives at that time?
This is my simple answer to the question above: as at the time Governor Makinde was issuing that instruction, it was obvious that he had lost out in the battle for the control of the PDP.
There was already a direct judgment of the Federal High Court which barred the Chairman and members of the National Working Committee loyal to him and that same judgment gave recognition to the National Caretaker Committee loyal to his rival, Nyesom Wike.
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as a result of that judgement, had also recognized the National Caretaker Committee.
I have always been saying this, the newly amended Electoral Act does not leave much time for certain political activities.
Many of the activities preceeding election proper have become so compressed.
So, at that point, it was already a race against time.
Yes, there were cases in court but, without prejudice to those cases, the outcome were not difficult to predict.
What I expected Governor Seyi Makinde to have done by the time he was asking his followers to be erecting Billboards with the PDP logo all over the place, is what he started doing some days ago.
So, from the above background, the proverb of ” Abeni Agbon” stirred something in me.
Governor Seyi Makinde, reportedly, has embraced the APM whose logo is the cassava tuber.
If you look at it critically, some people have been tied down all these while.
They were agonizingly waiting for the Governor to decide on the next political steps.
They couldn’t move to the right, neither to the left.
When the Governor finally decided, it was a very symbolic decision.
A decision to dump the umbrella for cassava tubers.
Certainly, someone had it in mind, that when you tie down a goat, you definitely must feed it with cassava.
Governor Makinde’s decision to embrace the cassava party is symbolic in more than one way.
As a member of a rival political party, if he had taken such a decision three years ago, I would have been jittery.
At that time, cassava was selling like gold.
However, at present, the prices of cassava have dropped, to the extent that the commodity is not even attracting buyers.
It’s as if someone struck cassava with the enchantment of ” okuta”. ( Poor sales).
I hope Governor Seyi Makinde knew that the commodity on the logo of his new party has become completely useless.
God has many ways of communicating with man and the use of symbols is one of those ways.
The APM is not a political party of interest until the politically displaced persons decided to be porting on the platform.
Interestingly, since yesterday, I have been hearing stories about the APM which points to the fact that the platform is also plagued with Leadership crisis.
Infact, it is alleged that they are also in court.
I hope Governor Seyi Makinde is aware of this facts and if he was, I hope he considered the likely consequences.
We don’t want to be hearing that it is Tinubu and the APC who are stifling the opposition, because, according to my findings, the Leadership crisis in the APM predates the presidency of Tinubu.
We have to put this facts before the public now, because, we know that some people are genius in the art of crying and blackmail and before they begin to cry all over the place, we owe it a duty to the public, to tell them that the political party they have adopted was in crisis even, before Tinubu became president.
Sometimes, I used to wonder, why would someone do what Governor Makinde is doing to himself?
He had a very brilliant opportunity of being in joint control of the PDP with Wike and perhaps, be in control of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Oyo state.
At least, by his own admission, he alleged that the president actually told him that he wanted him to help reorganize the APC in Oyo state but he declined the offer.
I have also been asking myself, what exactly does Governor Makinde want because his case is becoming like the case of the concubine who is insisting on eating pawpaw. ( A fini sesin ale to ni Oun fee je ibepe).
You embraced Nyesom Wike when it suited you and attempted to stab him in the back later.
You did the same thing with Tinubu.
The unfortunate part is that, when Governor Seyi Makinde wants to turn the table against his helpers, he needs no excuse, just blackmail.
He is fighting Tinubu just because he claimed that he nominated a Minister and the president declined to approve of his nominee.
Unfortunately, that is just one side of the story.
We will expose him at the right time but let me ask, who says it is Governor Makinde’s right to nominate a Minister for Tinubu?
He would have been comfortable, doing what Wike is doing now, or even worse, if Tinubu had approved his Ministerial nominee, wouldn’t he?
He also claimed that he was in a meeting where Wike promised the president that he was going to hold down the PDP for the latter and that was his reason for fighting Wike.
Only a gullible person would believe that.
You claimed to be part of such a meeting, you never told us that you disagreed with Wike in the presence of the president.
You also didn’t deem it fit to expose Wike and the president immediately.
You waited for the right time, when you needed an excuse to justify your unnecessary fight with Wike before you’re now telling us stories.
No right thinking person would believe that, I repeat.
I believe that God Almighty is in all these.
I have been wondering, assuming Governor Seyi Makinde decided to take the offer by the president, if it was really made, what would have been the fate of original APC members in Oyo state?
Pride, they say, goes before a fall.
I have told Governor Seyi Makinde that a storm would come and when it does, the impact would be fatal.
The tempest is here and there is no escape route.
I also foresee tough times for Governor Seyi Makinde’s Media propagandists.
The tide has changed.
This time around, we are well prepared for both the Governor and the fifth columnists.
We will be in full control of the agenda setting for the next election.
There will be no room for blackmailing and Media bullying of the opposition in Oyo state.
Our mumu don do.
If you have been fortunate to have received a gift of SUV from Governor Makinde, ride your car peacefully, don’t jump into the arena.
The people of Oyo state deserves to know the truth about the man who has been in charge of their resources in the past seven years and we are poised, armed with facts and figures, to expose him.
There won’t be room for cover up.
Sola Abegunde.
