By John Dike, Osogbo
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has dismissed claims that its governorship candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, shunned the peace accord signing ceremony ahead of the August 15 governorship election.
It said Oyebamiji was represented at the event held in Osogbo on Thursday by his running mate, Engr. Kayode Adereti, who led a delegation of the party to the ceremony.
In a statement issued on Friday by its Director of Media and Information, Mogaji Kola Olabisi, the party accused the state chapter of the ruling Accord Party of spreading what it described as misinformation and disinformation over the attendance of its candidate.
It was reacting to an earlier statement by the Accord Party leadership alleging that Oyebamiji had shunned the peace accord event.
The APC described the allegation as “mischievous” and said its deputy governorship candidate was present at the ceremony on behalf of the party.
“We want to state unequivocally that it wasn’t true that our governorship candidate shunned the event as it was mischievously stated in the Accord Party’s press statement made available to the press yesterday,” the statement said.
The APC further accused the Accord Party leadership of deliberately ignoring the presence of its delegation at the event.
It said the presence of Adereti demonstrated the APC’s commitment to the peace process ahead of the election.
The party also claimed that Oyebamiji had consistently expressed his commitment to peaceful elections, stressing that his ambition to become governor was not worth the blood of any resident of Osun State.
“Our governorship candidate is a thorough-bred virtuous human being who can go to any length to seek peace, which is the reason he often states that his governorship ambition does not worth the blood of any inhabitant of the state,” the statement said.
It accused the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke of failing to adequately address alleged political violence and insecurity in the state.
The party questioned the sincerity of the peace accord, alleging that some individuals it described as political hoodlums were allegedly being protected by the state government.
The APC specifically challenged Governor Adeleke to demonstrate his commitment to peace by taking action against individuals whom the party accused of involvement in political violence.
“It was indeed nauseating that Governor Adeleke who signed a peace accord in respect of the election in Osogbo yesterday failed to turn in to the police, the galaxy of the political hoodlums he is keeping in the state Government House,” the party alleged.
The APC further expressed concern over what it described as the deterioration of security in Osun, alleging that political violence had contributed to avoidable deaths in the state.
It asked residents to reject what it described as the continuation of the current administration and promised that an APC government under Oyebamiji would restore what it called the lost glory of the state.
“We however plead with the people of the state that all the lost glory of the state shall be restored when our governorship candidate, Asiwaju Oyebamiji, assumes office as the next executive governor of the state,” the party said.
The APC’s statement was signed electronically by Mogaji Kola Olabisi, its Director of Media and Information.
The August 15 governorship election is expected to feature a contest between the incumbent Governor Adeleke of the Accord Party and Oyebamiji of the APC, alongside candidates of other political parties.
