Osun Guber: APC Didn’t Win in 2018, Ex-Deputy Speaker Says

• Alleges Omo-Agege was compensated with deputy Senate president

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

A former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Lasun Yusuff, has alleged that the All Progressives Congress (APC) didn’t win the governorship election in Osun State in 2018.

The governorship election in the state was keenly contested among the Social Democratic Party (SDP) with former Deputy Governor of the State, Senator Iyiola Omisore, as its candidate; the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the incumbent Governor, Mr. Gboyega Oyetola, and the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ademola Adeleke.

However, the APC later struck a deal with Omisore and his party, the SDP, which saw his supporters voting for APC during the rerun election before it was subsequently won by APC.

The former lawmaker also alleged categorically that the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, was compensated with his present position for rigging him out during the primary election in 2018.

Yusuff stated this yesterday in Abuja when he came to pick the governorship election form ahead of the state governorship election.

He said in 2018, when the opportunity came for him to contest the governorship election, there was a serious gang up against him at the party level within the state.

The former lawmaker noted that the gang up was serious, well-orchestrated and coordinated.

He said despite the fact that he knew the whole thing was tilted against him, he was not bothered and neither did he contemplate jumping ship.

Yusuff pointed out that the confusion over direct or indirect primary started in Osun State when the powers that be were bent on rigging him out.

He said: “Let me remind Nigerians today that whether it is a direct or indirect primary, the confusion started in Osun State in 2018, with the sole aim of rigging Lasun Yusuff out of the governorship election. I’m that important in APC.

“But because of the kind of person I am, people were calling me all over the country, so they wanted me not to take part in that governorship election. They told me whatever money I was spending or I must have spent was going to be a waste because the election was going to be rigged. In party politics, if you are not prepared to lose at times, then you are not a politician. That means you are only fighting for positions for selfish reasons.”

The former deputy Speaker said he already knew the election was going to be rigged because the platform was already prepared.

Yusuff alleged that the former Governor of Zamfara State, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, was appointed as chairman of the committee to conduct the primary election in Osun State, but couldn’t carry out the kind of assignment the party asked him to because of his popularity.

He added: “And let me tell you this, the former governor of Zamfara State was the chairman of that committee. On the day of the primary, Yari did not go to Osun State, that is left for you journalists to go and find out why he did not go.

“But let me give you a glimpse of what actually happened. The man knew I was popular. He was instructed to go and do a particular thing, but he told them, I have run an investigation and I have discovered that the deputy Speaker is popular, if you want us to come and achieve this, it might be difficult. That was one of the reasons that the man didn’t come to Osun State.”

Yusuff further revealed that the job was undertaken by the current Deputy Senate President, Omo-Agege, after he became the chairman of the committee overnight.

He added: “And I want to state that if he likes, he can controvert this, one of the reasons why he is deputy Senate president today was that he was compensated for that job.

“Omo-Agege was in my home town for four hours on the day of that primary and he actually conducted three wards primaries out of six wards of my home town, and he signed three results. So, if I had wanted to go to court, what happened in Zamfara State would have happened in Osun State. But I never went to court because I wanted to start writing petitions.

“But on Thursday when they met at the party secretariat, I warned them, I said if you rig me out of this election, I can assure you that you are not going to win the governorship. They thought I was a small boy who was just blabbing, or it was just a mere threat.

“But you are all witnesses to what happened when the election was eventually held. Did they win? They didn’t because there is no way they can rig because Rauf Aregbesola and some of us, his friends, came together in 2004 and fought the battle to claim that state for the progressives.

“Nobody born of a woman will do what they did to me in 2018 again. I’m not talking about violence, don’t misunderstand me. The people know me, I don’t use thugs in politics, I don’t do violence in the state, but whoever tries it will have his generation to blame for it.”