Tribunal witnesses protest against Aregbesola

Hell was let loose yesterday at the Osun State Government secretariat when members of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) who were witnesses for Governor Rauf Aregbesola at the election petition tribunals protested the failure of the governor to honour the agreement reached with them.
Hundreds of placard carrying protesters besieged the State Secretariat in the early hours of the day chanting various songs to register their protest over the failure of Aregbesola to compensate them for testifying in his favour at the tribunal.
A major casualty of the protest was the Deputy Governor, Otunba Titilayo Laoye-Tomori who was temporarily held hostage by the irate protesters who demanded explanation for the failure of the governor to fulfill what they described as gentleman agreement between them.
It would be recalled that governor Aregbesola was declared winner of the April 2007 governorship election of the state by the verdict passed by Justice Mary Ogie-led election tribunal in Ibadan on November 27, 2010.
But the witnesses from ten local governments’ areas in the state that appeared for Aregbesola are now pointing accusing fingers at him for reneging on their agreement to reward them monetarily and thus decided to embark on protest to express their grievances and drive home their point.
The protesters barricaded the entrance to the state secretariat, Abere, Osogbo carrying placards with inscriptions “Aregbesola is an ingrate to the witnesses”, “Aregbesola and Assembly members that went to the Tribunal dumped the witnesses” thereby paralyzing free-flow of traffic in and out of the State secretariat.
Also caught in the web of the scenario was state commissioner for Local government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Barrister Kolapo Alimi who was equally held hostage thereby forcing him to addressing the protesters.
While appealing to the protesters, Alimi said: “You know we are all from the same party, your grievances are genuine but the channel you are taking is not right. If the governor sees you protesting, he won’t find it pleasant, just because you people are from the same party with him”.
One of the protesters, Nafiu Raji from Ayedaade Local government area of the state said: “We stormed here today (Tuesday) as a result of the agreement we had with the governor that when he reclaims his mandate, we will be the first people he will attend to as witnesses.
But this is two years since he reclaimed his mandate and Aregbesola has never deemed it fit to say “thank you” not to talk of fulfilling the agreement”.
Awoyale Tunde, an octogenarian from Ifedayo Local government revealed that he received machete cuts and was brutalized during the struggle for Aregbesola to reclaim his mandate.
“I was brutalized, I laid down my life for Aregbesola and he promised us heaven and earth, saying that we are going to be the first people he will attend to if he became the governor but has forgotten the promises he made to us. Governor Aregbesola has settled the lawyers but refused to honour our pacts,” he added.