Miffed by the call from Prince Dotun Oyelade, Chairman of the Omituntun 2.0 Media Team, on opposition candidates not to contest the 2023 polls against his principal, Governor Seyi Makinde, as his “unprecedented achievements,” already guaranteed victory, the Public Affairs and Critical Communications Committee of the Tinubu/Folarin Campaign Council, has reacted, saying it received the call with amusement.
In a release in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, the Committee which spoke through its Secretary, Adebo Akinola, wondered if the release indeed emanated from the otherwise respected veteran journalist, or it was another joke carried too far, from the retinue of bootlickers camped in the Makinde government.
If approved by Oyelade, the release noted, then the veteran journalist must have been apparently consumed by the weight of his new assignment, as there was no evidence on ground to back the huge claims contained therein.
“Much as we concede to Prince Oyelade the right to say whatever he fancies, especially to give the impression he’s taken to his current assignment with zest, we believe this maiden combat is a demonstration of poor judgment, a naked dance of shame, and a terribly amateurish outing.
“Truth is, if the Omituntun 2.0 Media Team had any iota of shame, they would’ve covered their faces, given the immediate rebuttal that followed announcement of the composition of its membership. To say that a Committee headed by a veteran journalist like Prince Oyelade could throw all caution to the winds, to the extent of enlisting practicing professionals, despite standing statutes of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) which forbade same, is nothing but an embarrassment, not only to the governor who we believe approved the committee constitution, but also to Prince Oyelade, who should definitely know better. Unfortunately, when veterans and media managers, for the lure of filthy lucre, turn blind eye to ethical misconducts, we can only fear for the future of the pen profession,” the statement said.
Condemning what it called an “unsolicited and harebrained advice” from the governor’s camp, Akinola argued that such release from the Omituntun camp represented nothing but a crass display of unbridled arrogance, and could at best be termed “empty boasts; vain utterances”.
Noting that to pin Governor Makinde’s victory in 2019 down to the “sanctity of his mission and the faith the ordinary people had in him,” is nothing but a continuation of Governor Makinde’s demonstrated ingratitude to the political titans who midwifed his victory, under an unprecedented, never-seen-before coalition, which fell apart irretrievably, not less than 12 months post-victory, the Tinubu/Folarin Public Affairs and Critical Communications Committee, reminded Governor Makinde that discounting the huge contributions of Senator Rasidi Ladoja, Senator Olufemi Lanlehin and Barrister Sarafadeen Alli to his 2019 victory is akin to poking the middle finger into the proverbial eye of the helper; an act which is disgraceful, ungodly and clearly against the African ethos of Omoluabi which Governor Makinde pretentiously subscribes to.
“As for the unprecedented achievements in infrastructure and human capital development alluded to, we’re at a loss as to what that means – whether it includes the governor’s “no-show” in Ibarapaland, his nonoperative farm estates in Ibadan, or his inability to fulfill promises made to tertiary institutions whose finances he’s since castrated, giving his Southsouth Consultant, Platinum, unfettered access to run the schools like a private entity, and then curry a 10% cut from the already lean finances of these institutions; or is it the nonpayment of the October salaries of these category of workers, more than two weeks after their counterparts in the civil service were paid, a trend which in fact covers all subvention-drawing departments and agencies, contrary to the blanket advert of all workers being paid on the 25th. Sadly too, despite promising the College of Education, Lanlate heaven and earth during his February visit, not one kobo has been released eight months after, while the school’s only bridge, which broke down more than three years ago, and whose repair was promised by the governor has also been neglected, not forgetting its accreditation which hangs in the balance, despite the governor’s awareness; or is Prince Oyelade referring to the impotence of the local government and their elected officials in the face of Governor Makinde’s “know-it-all” style, to the point no single development has occured at that tier in almost four years; or maybe it is about the non-release of grants to secondary schools, with the Governor’s terrible allegation of graft on otherwise dedicated men and women of the teaching profession, and erudite members of the respective school governing boards.
“Again, we’d like to know if these unprecedented achievements cover the deployment of diesel generator-powered streetlights in the 21st Century, when as an Engineer, the governor should know the world is moving towards renewable energy, or do those achievements include the terrible mismanagement of the environment, which has seen dirt return, street trading unchecked, and beggars litter everywhere, a problem apparently beyond the governor’s ken, and which frustrated him to the point of threatening the beggars’ relocation to Kishi, an otherwise reputable town of men and women of honour, and undoubtedly Oyo State’s food basket,” the release queried.
Avering that for the Governor’s Media Team to conclude Senator Teslim Folarin, Oyo APC’s governorship candidate has no plan for Oyo State, is to elevate beer parlour gossip to greater heights, the Tinubu/Folarin Public Affairs and Critical Communications Committee maintained that if the Omituntun 2.0 Team, diminished by members’ public refusal to serve, and disgraced by the ensuing rebuttal, was studious enough, it would’ve picked up workable plans from Folarin’s media rounds, supposing the team members were too lazy or engrossed in their usual bootlicking assignments, to read his Forward Oyo State Blueprint, which covers holistic agricultural reforms, strategic urban regeneration drive, employment opportunities through innovative ideas, first-rate healthcare service delivery, high quality education, among other pro-people programmes.
“What Prince Oyelade, and indeed the Makinde Team terms good governance, is nothing but a show of unpreparedness, accidental leadership and a waste of Oyo’s meagre resources on white-elephant projects which yield no benefit, but only massages the governor’s ego, to which an end will be put to, by the special grace of God, and the support of the good people of Oyo State come 2023, when they deliver the mandate to Senator Teslim Folarin, an individual whose administrative acumen and political savviness stands him miles apart, not only from the prodigal incumbent, but also that second time contestant best described as a boastful, adventure-seeking sore loser,” the release concluded.
Adebo Akinola
For BAT/TKF Campaign,
6/11/2022.
