Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan
Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State yesterday attributed his electoral victory in the 2019 governorship election to the advice offered him by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, during his electioneering four years ago.
Makinde said this during a visit to the palace of the monarch in Oyo on his way to inspect the abandoned 10,000 metric ton silo embarked upon by the immediate past administration and the Ajila Value Adding Ventures Limited in Awe.
He said unknown to many, he still enjoys the fatherly support of the first class monarch and he has always been treated as such, noting that although he had visited the Alaafin in 2015 to seek his support for his support and blessings at the polls, it was only the monarch who told him the truth of the situation on ground and offered him advice on how to go about it.
Makinde stated further that putting the counsel into use in the 2019 elections subsequently helped his ambition.
According to him, “We are actually on our way to Awe for inspection, but there is no way I would come around here without first visiting the palace. I have told Kabiyesi that in two weeks’ time, I would come and visit him properly because we are actually at work now.
“What many people do not know is the closeness between me and the Alaafin. Some people have told me that they wanted to bring me to Alaafin but I just kept it to myself not telling them that if they had known the kind of relationship we have, they would have been the ones asking me to take them to him.
“During my campaign in 2015, it was only the Alaafin that told me the truth on how we have been doing and how we were not doing things right. All he told us were put to use in the 2019 elections which gave us victory.
“We are here to inspect projects on how our economy can improve, and I am sure that when we finish the project, Oyo town will also benefit from it. The facility will help our farmers have good storage facility for the farm produce and consequently moderate practices, especially prices when the need arises.
“We all know the truth about security but we have been able to manage the situation well, and we look forward to the cooperation between the government and the people.”
