Group Accuses Ondo Dep Gov Of Blackmailing Akeredolu

By Amaechi Ekpeneru

The Ondo Unity League has condemned what it described as plots by some people to blackmail Governor Rotimi Akeredolu into picking his present deputy-governor Agboola Ajayi for the 2020 gubernatorial polls.

The group in a statement titled “Re-Ondo Deputy’s Governor Divides PDP; Hand of Esau, Voice of Jacob” and signed by the League Coordinator, Zebulon Omosehin alleged that recent stories of the Deputy-Governor, Agboola Ajayi running against his boss, Governor Akeredolu are part of efforts to portray a tough status to awe the governor into submission.

According to the statement, “in many of these sponsored articles, the deputy governor, Agboola Ajayi, was described as “a grassroots politician from the south district”, “a rallying point against Akeredolu in 2020”, amongst many other qualities, who will run under the PDP, basically to portray a tough status to awe the governor into submission.

“The truth is that, based on mountain loads of allegations against the deputy governor, the governor and those in Ondo APC are already considering not to field him again as Akeredolu’s deputy.

“Hence the recent media upper ground and underground swimming to appraise himself, accuse the governor, put up fake threatening status and at the same time supplying rebuttals upon rebuttals to all these which have been emanating from him.

“To drive home more intimidation, the plot suggested he is being sponsored by the Sokoto governor, Aminu Tambuwal, considering Hon Adedayo Omolafe  as his deputy and “enjoying the supports” of former commissioners like Taofiq Abdulsalam and Solagbade Amodeni, who were recently sacked by the governor. But only to turn around and apologise to only Governor Tambuwal, for what he called “public embarrassment” and left out others whose names featured in the plot.

“The questions are, why apologising if you are not the originator of the scam? Why apologise to only Tambuwal and not others?

“The plot also has it as a mandate to make it look the stories of the deputy governor’s 2020 plan is directed at what they called  “incriminating him and thereby push him out of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu’s second term bid”, but obviously a gimmick geared towards seeking a chance of Governor Akeredolu changing his mind to run with him again.

“But again, this is part of the plot not carefully charted. Will the deputy governor come out openly to denounce this same plan which they even went ahead to threaten would be “a serious crack in Akeredolu’s political block”?

“Did the deputy governor publicly apologise to the governor as did to Governor Tambuwal in his rebuttals, for allegations credited to an anonymous within the governor’s cabinet which the plot said stated that he, “Ajayi’s growing popularity and influence may be a reason for the political cold wars” between him and the governor which they said is making “every effort to ensure Ajayi’s political strength is drastically reduced”?

“Did the deputy governor in any of his rebuttals, ever apologise to the governor for the reportage purporting that he, Akeredolu took “prompt measures to cut the political influence of his deputy to size”, touting the “PDP background” of the deputy governor?

“If the deputy governor who is now apologising to only his friend Governor Tambuwal, is that popular as made to believe, how come PDP won his constituency and southern  senatorial district? Is it that the popularity was used against his party, APC and for PDP or the popularity is a concocted one?”

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