LG Election Osoba and Sia War Worsens as both camp submits Different lists to Inec

IT is now official: Ogun State Governor, Mr. Ibikunle Amosun, and his godfather, Chief Olusegun Osoba, are locked in a war of attrition.
This follows Amosun’s perceived resolve to favour his fellow defectors from the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) to the detriment of the original members of Osoba’s Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), which produced the former as the state’s helmsman in the 2011 general election.
Efforts to keep the brewing crisis under wraps have collapsed.
Yesterday, members of Osoba’s camp unveiled their list of candidates for the July 21 Local Government election, which they said was submitted to the Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission, three days before Amosun gave the election umpire another list.
Osoba is a former Governor of the state on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), from which the Action Congress (AC) and later ACN, emerged.
Amosun has since assumption of office favoured his fellow ANPP defectors in appointments, to the chagrin of the ruling party’s original members who are staunch supporters of Chief Osoba.
After weeks of street protests feared planned jettisoning of primary election by Amosun and unilateral imposition of his allies, the Osoba faction yesterday went to town with its list of candidates for the coming polls.
The ACN leaders and members loyal to Osoba disowned the list of Amosun’s candidates.
They disclosed that their list, which contains names of 20 chairmanship candidates and 236 councillorship candidates, was the one “originally” submitted to OGSIEC for screening.
The local government chairmanship candidates they unveiled include Isaq Adesanya (Abeokuta North), Moshood Akinyele (Abeokuta South), Musiliu Akindele (Odeda), Folorunso Sotubo (Sagamu), Tajudeen Odumade (Ijebu North-East), Wale Balogun (Ijebu North), Nathaniel Sodipo (Ewekoro), Soliu Falade (Ipokia), Abiodun Oluwaseun (Obafemi Owode) and Olaotan Odunayo (Yewa South).
Others are Gabriel Falola (Yewa North), Sunday Bankole (Ifo), Shamsudeen Onanuga (Ijebu-Ode), Dumosu Adebanjo (Odogbolu), Omotayo Olusegun (Ijebu East), Samuel Idowu (Remo North), Isiaka Ojuroye (Ikenne), Ismaila Sanusi (Imeko Afon), Sunday Onanuga (Ogun Waterside) and Mustapha Kunle (Ado-Odo/Ota).
The local government chair-manship candidates endorsed by Amosun include Taofik Olabode (Abeokuta North), Lanre Edun (Abeokuta South), Sulaiman Adebayo (Odeda), Funmi Efuwape (Sagamu), Femi Odufowokon (Ijebu North-East), Laide Osifeso (Ijebu North), Dele Soluade (Ewekoro), Isiak Aderounmu (Ipokia), Nurudeen Diyaolu (Obafemi Owode) and Shafiu Odebiyi (Yewa South).
The others are Tajudeen Amoo (Yewa North), Oluwole Enilolobo (Ifo), Oluwakemi Rasaq Dada (Ijebu-Ode), Olawale Shittu (Odogbolu), Dare Ogunde (Ijebu East), Olufemi Abayomi Soyemi (Remo North), Tajudeen Salako (Ikenne), Ajani Ayilara (Imeko Afon), Tunde Rufai (Ogun Waterside) and Rotimi Ramon (Ado-Odo/Ota).
In a letter dated June 15, 2012 signed by the ACN State Secretary, Alhaji Abimbola Awofeso, and addressed to OGSIEC Chairman, the party said the candidates were endorsed at its Enlarged State Executive Committee meeting held on May 31, 2012. A copy of the letter was obtained yesterday by the Nigerian Compass on Saturday.
Awofeso’s letter read in part: “At the meeting of the Enlarged State Executive Committee of the party, held on the 31st May, 2012, it was unanimously resolved that the attached list of the party’s nominated candidates for the coming council polls be forwarded to your commission.
“As the State Secretary of our great party and going by the said resolution of 31st May, 2012, I hereby forward the attached list of the candidates of Action Congress of Nigeria for the coming local government council polls.”

A chieftain of the party, who spoke on condition of anonymity yesterday, said while the ACN list was forwarded to OGSIEC on June 15, Amosun’s group was submitted on June 18, 2012.
The chieftain told the Nigerian Compass on Saturday that candidates nominated by the party passed through due process as stipulated by the ACN’s constitution.
The source explained that Section 21:5 subsection A,B and C as well as Section 21:6 subsection A,B,C and D specifically stipulate the procedure through which chairmanship   and councillorship candidates of the party would emerge.
The ACN topshot alleged that the candidates being paraded by the governor failed to emerge through the stipulated process.
The source said: “Any aspirant seeking nomination as local government chairmanship candidate shall submit himself to election at the ward congress specially convened for that purpose. That’s what the party constitution says.
“Any aspirant who scores a simple majority of total votes cast in more than half of the wards within the constituency shall be considered winner and therefore duly nominated.”
Although OGSIEC officially released list of candidates cleared for the local government elections on Wednesday, it could not be established which of the two lists was released for ACN.
The OGSIEC Chairman, Alhaja Risikat Ogunfemi, could not be reached yesterday for comments on the development.
Policemen had last week taken over the State Secretariat of the party in Abeokuta, the state capital, as the crisis over imposition of candidates for the council election deepened. Hundreds of the party’s intensified their protest against imposition of candidates by Governor Amosun and certain ACN leaders.
The aggrieved members, had previously staged a protest to the Ibara, Abeokuta residence of former Governor Osoba.

 

AMOSUN’S CHAIRMANSHIP LIST

•Isaq Adesanya (Abeokuta North) •Moshood Akinyele (Abeokuta South) •Musiliu Akindele (Odeda) •Folorunso Sotubo (Sagamu) •Tajudeen Odumade (Ijebu North-East) •Wale Balogun (Ijebu North) •Nathaniel Sodipo (Ewekoro) •Soliu Falade (Ipokia) •Abiodun Oluwaseun (Obafemi Owode) •Olaotan Odunayo (Yewa South) •Gabriel Falola (Yewa North) •Sunday Bankole (Ifo) •Shamsudeen Onanuga (Ijebu-Ode) •Dumosu Adebanjo (Odogbolu) •Omotayo Olusegun (Ijebu East) •Samuel Idowu (Remo North) •Isiaka Ojuroye (Ikenne) •Ismaila Sanusi (Imeko Afon) •Sunday Onanuga (Ogun Waterside) •Mustapha Kunle (Ado-Odo/Ota)

 

OSOBA’S CHAIRMANSHIP

•Taofik Olabode (Abeokuta North) •Lanre Edun (Abeokuta South) •Sulaiman Adebayo (Odeda) •Funmi Efuwape (Sagamu) •Femi Odufowokon (Ijebu North-East) •Laide Osifeso (Ijebu North) •Dele Soluade (Ewekoro) •Isiak Aderounmu (Ipokia) •Nurudeen Diyaolu (Obafemi Owode) •Shafiu Odebiyi (Yewa South) •Tajudeen Amoo (Yewa North) •Oluwole Enilolobo (Ifo) •Oluwakemi Rasaq Dada (Ijebu-Ode) •Olawale Shittu (Odogbolu) •Dare Ogunde (Ijebu East) •Olufemi Abayomi Soyemi (Remo North) •Tajudeen Salako (Ikenne) •Ajani Ayilara (Imeko Afon) •Tunde Rufai (Ogun Waterside) •Rotimi Ramon (Ado-Odo/Ota)