Ordinarily, I am not perturbed by Bimbo Adekanmbi’s vituperations against Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli, the Gubernatorial candidate of APC in Oyo state .The outburst under reference was laden with tantrums. It is another case of “argumentun ad hominem “ i.e. direct attacks on personality rather than the issues. Experience matters a lot in politics, most especially, when it comes to the issue of interacting with the press.
Bimbo’s meteoric rise to political stardom in Oyo state is clay footed, hence, he neither has the intellectual depth to arrive at a sound judgment on political issues nor has the required critical thinking to analyse issues in their proper perspectives with a view to derive a well reasoned inference or conclusion. Here is a man whose foray into the Oyo state political arena was achieved through political appointments. He skipped the rigorous rituals of attending ward and local government periodic meetings to fraternise with our compatriots at the grassroots. This is a classical example of climbing tree from the top. Hence, he lacks the required political experience and technical expertise on how to resolve issues on the subject matter at hand.
His reference to Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli’s stewardship as the chairman of Ibadan North LGA in the 1990s was distorted. Bimbo Adekanmbi’s remarks were full of concocted lies, manipulations and fabrications which were meant to mislead the unsuspecting members of the public to tilt their support in his favour as the Gubernatorial Candidate of APM in Oyo – State. Suffice asking this question at this juncture, “How old was Bimbo Adekanmbi in the year 1991? “ He was either a passive witness of what actually transpired in those years or fed with inaccurate versions on the matter. For record purposes, I am inclined to state the true version of the story.
Sharafadeen Alli was elected as the local government Chairman under the auspices of the National Republican Convention ( N.R.C). It was an upset against the candidate of the dominant party in Oyo State, “ Social Democratic Party (S.D.P)” It was a rare feat in those days to have achieved this kind of success. Fast forwarded to the era of governance proper, discriminatory and oppressive actions were taken against Sharafadeen Alli led.. administration by the SDP – led state government in Oyo state. These included starvation of funds and denial of certain rights and privileges which the Sharafadeen Alli. .. led local government was entitled to. This was the consequence of his refusal to switch over his political alignment to the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
I am of the opinion that Bimbo Adekanmbi should not have dissipated his energy on disparaging his co-contestant’s personality using falsehood and wild propaganda. Rather, he should direct his attention and focus on his mission on governance and correcting the mistakes/errors committed by his benefactor, GSM, during his inglorious administration. Today, the judgement of history is not in favour of GSM… led administration based on the failure of the governance system. Although, Bimbo Adekanmbi actually posited that he would continue with same trajectory if elected, God forbids, as the next Governor of Oyo – state.
In Oyo- state, we are contending with the infrastructural deficit and decay, stagnation in education growth and development, poor transportation system, environmental degradation, worse health services, gross indiscipline in the public workforce, industrial stagnation, general insecurity, poor sanitation system, massive corruption in both low and high places in the governance system, eradication of ethical values, misplacement of priorities, policy somersault, desecration of cultural and traditional institutions in terms of direct and verbal assaults against traditional rulers, land grabbing, political brigandage, over inflation in the costs of contracts, poverty and provocative official pronouncements from the government spokespersons, just to mention a few.
Another dimension is the paralysis of the third tier of government i.e. the local government administration in Oyo-state. Governor Seyi Makinde does not believe in the local government council autonomy. This position contradicts the Supreme Court judgment on the matter. Just like a needle shall continually trace the path of the thread, Bimbo Adekanmbi posited that he shall adopt the same tragic policy of non – recognition of the local government council autonomy.
In contrast, Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli is poised to correct all these ills and revamp the state economy when elected as the executive Governor of Oyo-state in 2027.In the real sense of it, traditional and cultural institutions in Oyo state shall be accorded due recognition and respect. Public worse shall receive better deals from his government while our traditional institutions shall be freed from the bondage of being supervised by the consultants.
Moreover, our health institutions shall become functional and not mere consulting clinics as being experienced now. All measures shall be put in place to stamp out insecurity in Oyo state to guarantee safety of lives and properties. Commuters shall enjoy improved transportation system and agricultural services shall be put on the right track.
Of significance, the issue of circular road shall be revisited to ensure that justice is done.
Senator Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli’s administration shall synergise with the APC-led Federal government to enhance provision of good roads, creation of Federal government projects and location of more federal government owned institutions in Oyo state.
By dint of his experience as a public administrator, he shall restore the local government council autonomy to enhance provision of dividends of democracy to the citizens at the grassroots on one hand, and to accelerate the provision of social infrastructure on the other hand.
Oyo state can’t afford experiencing another failure of governance by entrusting its leadership in the hands of another greenhorn in politics.
Experience matters a lot. The era of trial and error is gone.
The likes of Bimbo Adekanmbi can only be considered in the absence of capable and competent hands. Unfortunately, there exists qualified citizens that have the required competence, capacity, ability and experience to move Oyo state forward. Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli belongs to this class.
