Some political leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Ogun West Senatorial District of the State have taken a swipe at the Senator representing Lagos West, Solomon Adeola, over his plan to contest the Ogun West ticket, saying he lacks both moral and constitutional right to do so.

They also kicked against alleged plans to hand over the party's ticket for next election to the Sentor popularly called, Yayi who they tagged a ‘foreigner’, insisting that the senatorial ticket ‘is not for sale.’

The party elders including the former Minister of State for Education, Senator Iyabo Anisulowo, spoke in Ilaro, Yewa South Local Government Area of the state, during a meeting "Preserving The Integrity of Ogun West Senatorial District."

The meeting attracted former commissioners, Local Government Chairmen and members of the State House of Assembly, from the region.

The meeting also insisted that the accountant turned politician is not an indigene of the state, the same battle former Governor Ibikunle Amosun fought with the Lagos Senator when he made the attempt in preparation for the 2019 general election before the Senator returned to Lagos State.

The political leaders took turn to at the meeting describing Adeola's ambition as an aberration and illegal, while ruling out an alleged endorsement of Senator Adeola some a section of party leaders in the senatorial district.

It will be recalled that some leaders of the party, recently presented the Senator with nomination and expression of interest forms, the gesture which drew tears from the eyes of the Senator.

But speaking at the meeting, Anisulowo said, "The take home from this meeting is that we are not accepting a stranger to come and take our resources and our inheritance in this place. I'm not questioning his coming, wanting to leave here, but I'm questioning his politics and that he wants to come and take what belongs to us."

An 84-year-old APC Chieftain, Mrs Mary Ogunjobi said in her own contribution said, "What we are doing today is to counter the endorsement of a foreigner, by trying to destroy Ogun West. Our property (referring to Senate seat) is not for sale. Anybody that sells our property will suffer for it."

The former Chairman of Yewa South Local Government, Hon Jimoh Akinlade, called on the leadership of the Party to address the concern before it "leads to an embarrassment for the Party."

Akinlade said, "They should try to review what is going on in Ogun West Senatorial District, if they fail to do this, there is a doom ahead somehow. We love the Party, we love what the governor is doing, we don't want any embarrassment for the governor, hence, they do the right thing."

In a communique issued after the meeting, the elders resolved that leaders and party stakeholders in the region have neither endorsed nor ceded the APC senatorial ticket to Senator Adeola, while declaring their support for the Governor’s second term bid.

"We condemn in totality, the attempt by the serving Senator representing Lagos West Senatorial District, Olamilekan Solomon Adeola, known as 'YAYI', to jump ship and seek the mandate of Ogun West Senatorial district while still holding on the one he currently occupies; a blatant illegality of the most despicable order.

"We must reiterate that Ogun West is arrayed with patriotic and morally upright leaders who will not betray their fatherland by supporting illegality and assault on the land. Distinguished Senator Ayo Otegbola, Senator Akin Odunsi, Senator Kola Bajomo, Senator Gbolahan Dada, Senator Iyabo Anisulowo, Hon Jimoh Olaifa, Hon. Kola Lawal, Prince Gboyega Nasir Isiaka, Hon Biodun Akinlade, Chief Biyi Otegbeye, Hon Salmon Adeleke and Chief Mrs Mary Ogunjobi and Mr Tope Kuyebi are notable names among several others, who are not part of the evil plot to foist the Lagos Senator on Ogun West.

"We therefore use this medium to reinforce the indisputable fact that the genuine Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders of Ogun West APC are not in support of the illegal move, and neither have we endorsed anyone for the Senate seat of our senatorial district, talk more of Senator Olamilekan Adeola - who by clear provisions of the constitution and the electoral act is not qualified to contest elections in Ogun State; and anyone or group that who has done so, is speaking for themselves and not for Ogun West.

"Finally, we call on the National Working Committee (NWC) of our party, under the leadership of HE Senator Abdullahi Adamu and HE Prince Dapo Abiodun to intervene and halt the illegality being perpetrated in Ogun State. We like to also urge them to use their good offices to implement the admonition of the Leader of our Party, President Muhammadu Buhari, who said that the processes of the party and the tickets of offices must not be allocated to moneybags and the highest bidder."

Senator Adeola has been representing Lagos State since the 4th Republic when he was elected as a member represent Alimosho State Constituency II at the Lagos State House of Assembly from 2003 to 2007, and again from 2007 to 2011, on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria, CAN.

In 2011, Yayi was elected to the Federal House of Representative to represent Alimosho Federal Constituency of Lagos State, before he was elected to represent Lagos West at Senate from 2015 till date, where he’s serving second term.

It will be recalled that the Senator, who has secured the buy-in of many traditional rulers, including the Olu Ilaro and Paramount Ruler of Yewaland, Oba Kehinde Olugbenle, who recently installed him as Aremo of Yewaland, had insisted severally that he had not run afoul of the law, by contesting for a senate seat in Ogun State.

Adeola had said, "There are other schools of thoughts that questioned the legal position of my ambition. As far as I'm concerned, have I run foul of the constitution? the answer is ‘No’, have I run foul of the Party's constitution? The answer is ‘No’".

 

The 13 paragraph Communique is reproduced below:

 

Communique
The Committee of Concerned Ogun West Patriots Under the umbrella of "Ogun West Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders" in the All Progressives Congress (APC), met today in Ilaro to discuss on the State of Affairs in the Ogun West chapter of the party. After exhaustive deliberations, the Meeting arrived at the following conclusions:

1). That this meeting is a group of Concerned and patriotic Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders of the All Progressives Congress in Ogun West; who are committeed to the growth of the party and success of the current administration.
 

2). That the meeting salutes, very firmly, the strides of HE Prince Dapo Abiodun both in terms of his governance effort and leadership of the party. Consequently, we fully support his reelction bid for a second term to consolidate on the current achievements of this administration. 
 

3). Whereas, the party in Ogun State in whole has a semblance of order in its administration and processes, the same cannot be said of the Ogun West chapter that have been emeshed in controversies and acrimony; most especially on the administration of the party in the district and the selection process of its senatorial candidate particularly.
 

4). As patriotic Yewa-Awori indigenes, we are disturbed at the turn of events and as equal stakeholders of the APC in Ogun West, we have risen up to serve as the conscience of our people; in curtailing the desperate plot to force an Abberation down our throat, putting us in the news for wrong reasons and making us become a subject of ridicule in Nigeria today.
 

5). It must be stated that the principles of participatory democracy supposes that electoral contests must adhere to the fundamental ethos of fairness, equity, justice; and as guaranteed by extant laws of the land. Failure to uphold this noble standards will suggest that we are in a lawless society where rules and conscience have been dumped in the gutters.
 

6). Premising on item  5 above, we condemn in totality, the attempt by the serving Senator representing Lagos West Senatorial District, Olamilekan Solomon Adeola, known as 'YAYI', to jump ship and seek the mandate of Ogun West Senatorial district while still holding on the one he currently occupies; a blatant illegality of the most despicable order.
 

7). We are shocked and saddedend that the inordinate ambition of Senator Adeola received the support of a section of the party in Ogun West, who have been going around promoting him and organizing all manner of sponsored events and spurious claims; all in the name of being "Ogun West Leaders". 
 

8). We want to state emphatically that those who have done the endorsement of an aspirant are private supporters of that aspirant and do not speak for the generality of the Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders of Ogun West APC; because at nowhere did this senatorial district sit down to unanimously support or endorse any of the legitimate aspirant for the senatorial ticket of the party.
 

9). We must reiterate that Ogun West is arrayed with patriotic and morally upright leaders who will not betray their fatherland by supporting illegality and assault on the land. Distinguished Senator Ayo Otegbola, Senator Akin Odunsi, Senator Kola Bajomo, Senator Gbolahan Dada, Senator Iyabo Anisulowo, Hon Jimoh Olaifa, Hon. Kola Lawal, Prince Gboyega Nasir Isiaka, Hon Biodun Akinlade, Chief Biyi Otegbeye, Hon Salmon Adeleke and Chief Mrs Mary Ogunjobi and Mr Tope Kuyebi are notable names among several others, who are not part of the evil plot to foist the Lagos Senator on Ogun West.
 

10). We find it distasteful, the lies and manipulations of those "purported leaders", all in the bid to legitimise the smuggled aspirant into Ogun West. A clear example was when they said, Yewa Obas begged Asiwaju Tinubu to release the Senator to Ogun State. It took the denouncement of same by some bold Obas for us to know it was all a gimmick. In similar vein, they have used severally, the name of the Governor as a supporter of the gambit, to hoodwink people into joining the bandwagon of the attempt to import an illegality to Ogun West.
 

11). In another unfortunate development, they have used this inordinate agenda to not only compromise the integrity of the political party process in our senatorial district, they have dragged the traditional institution and religious institution in Yewaland into ridicule by enlisiting them into the murky waters of dirty politics all in the name of promoting the Lagos Senator.
 

12). We therefore use this medium to reinforce the indisputable fact that the genuine Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders of Ogun West APC are NOT in support of the illegal move, and neither have we endorsed anyone for the Senate seat of of our senatorial district, talk more of Senator Olamilekan Adeola - who by clear provisions of the constituton and the electoral act is not qualifued to contest elections in Ogun State; and anyone or group that who has done so, is speaking for themselves and not for Ogun West.
 

13). Finally, we call on the National Working Committee (NWC) of our party, under the leadership of HE Senator Abdullahi Adamu and HE Prince Dapo Abiodun to intervene and halt the illegality being perpetrated in Ogun State. We like to also urge them to use their good offices to implement the admonition of the Leader of our Party, President Muhammadu Buhari, who said that the processes of the party and the tickets of offices must not be allocated to moneybags and the highest bidder.

Signed: