Nathaniel Zaccheaus, Abuja
A member of the All Progressives Congress representing Osun West Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Senator Adelere Oriolowo, has urged the President-Elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to reconcile with the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, before the Saturday’s House of Assembly elections in Osun State.
Aregbesola and Tinubu have been having a running battle immediately the former ended his eight years tenure as governor of Osun State in 2015.
The development was responsible for the abysmal performance of the APC in Osun State at the recent Governorship Election and the just concluded National Assembly polls in the state.
Oriolowo made the appeal in Abuja yesterday when officials of the Nigerians For Bold Actions (NFBA), paid him a courtesy/ congratulatory visit on the victory of Tinubu, during the February 25 Presidential election.
Tinubu victory: Rivers Presidential RO, Prof Adias laments threats to life
The Senator lamented that internal crisis had consumed many big political parties in Nigeria, warning party chieftains to refrain from such menacing crisis.
When journalists confronted him with the lingering rift between the President-elect and the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the Senator appealed that all pending crisis within the party in Osun and elsewhere should be resolved before March 11 governorship/ State Assembly elections, so that it would not negatively affect the fortunes of the ruling party at the polls.
He said, “I want to believe that the issue of internal crisis within political parties is not limited to APC. Of course, you will discover that it is only APC that has survived its own internal crisis because you will discover that such crisis has consumed a number of the big parties.
“You will discover that internal crisis has torn apart many parties and APC is not excluded. But I want to point out that APC has effectively managed its own internal crisis. Be that as it may, one of my visions for this country is to have parties that are devoid of internal crisis or at least parties that will be able to manage their internal crisis.
“If you look deeply, you will discover that what has really caused a lot of problems within the political parties in this country is internal crisis. So, we have to do everything to avoid it.”
He observed that the internal crisis within the APC in Osun was so intense, that the opposition party had been rendered inactive, since opposition activities were already being done by the ruling party, warning party chieftains to desist from creating factions within the party.
He said, “in Osun State, the internal crisis there is so terrible that even the opposition has no work to do because the ruling party is doing the work of opposition within itself. That is why I am advising that the idea of creating factions within the party should be addressed and done away with. I want to advise my people in APC and even in other parties to stop the idea of creating factions within parties.”
The lawmaker expressed disappointment that, party faithfuls, rather than take advantage of intra-party groupings to attract more members and other benefits to the party, turned it to enmity and antagonism to the detriment of the party, advising that the trend should be jettisoned in order to stabilise the democracy.
Oriolowo said, “In Nigeria here, what I have discovered about forming groups and factions within party is that in most cases, it’s taken too far. Whenever they don’t belong to the same group, they see themselves as antagonists and enemies and it provokes bitterness that engenders a lot of crisis.
“If we want to stabilise our democracy, we need to shun inter-party and intra-party crisis. We should make sure that we resolve our internal crisis. Before Saturday elections, I am advising all factions especially in my own party, APC, to see themselves as friends. It may seem that nobody wants to back down but there is no pride in it,” he advised.
The National Chairman of the NFBA, Chief Taofeek Ayinde, on the occasion
urged the President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to run an inclusive government.
He said such arrangement would give all Nigerians a sense of belonging.
Ayinde also urged the President-Elect to tower above ethno-religious sentiments in governance, and lead exemplary, in order to engender a society where transparency, accountability, and integrity are core values.
