Aregbesola funding AD in Ondo for Tinubu’s sake – PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party in Osun State has accused Governor Rauf Aregbesola of funding the Alliance for Democracy in Ondo State with the scarce resources of the state to assist the embattled leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Senator Bola Tinubu, to have a firmer control of the Southwest. The Publicity Secretary of the PDP in Osun State, Mr. Diran Odeyemi, made this allegation in a chat with our correspondent in Osogbo. Specifically, the opposition party alleged that Aregbesola had spent several millions of Naira to fund the campaign expenses of the AD governorship candidate in Ondo, Mr. Olusola Oke, and had, since a month ago, moved notable members of the APC in Osun to Ondo in support of the AD.
According to Odeyemi, the funding of the election had further worsened the already parlous economic condition of Osun State, alleging that Governor Aregbesola had been unable to pay workers’ salaries for several months.
But the spokesperson for the APC in the state, Mr. Kunle Oyatomi, faulted the allegation leveled against Aregbesola by the PDP.
The APC asked PDP to show evidence or proof that Governor Aregbesola had been fund ing the Ondo AD with Osun State’s money, saying that until that was done, members of the public should disregard the claims by the PDP.
But the PDP spokesman said, “What other evidence is more than the governor’s inability to pay workers salary. Before Ondo State primary election, Governor Aregbesola was named “Baba Afusa” because he was paying “Half Salary.”
He is now being called “Baba Kudira,” which literarily means our money, “Kudi”, in Hausa Language, has vamoosed.
“What happened to the allocation he (Aregbesola) collected from June till date? Let him publish the statement of the state’s account to convince us that he is not sponsoring AD in Ondo State for the elections.”
Asked how much the Osun governor had spent on the Ondo AD and the mode of payment, Odeyemi added, “It is in several millions and it is continuous since the election has not been conducted. Asking for the mode of payment is reducing a serious and painful matter to jokes. It could be difficult to determine the figures.
“Don’t forget, Aregbesola’s involvement in Ondo State election and related matters dates back to some years past when money, raw cash, was flown in his helicopter to the state. That was during the last governorship election in the state. As we speak now, almost all that are relevant in Aregbesola’s arsenals in Osun have been in Ondo State since about three weeks. They are camped in the best hotels, feeding and drinking on daily basis on the bills of Osun.
“The youths of APC in Osun, especially, not one of them is left behind in Osun. Bola Ilori, a Special Adviser on Environmental matters; Bashiru Ajibola, former commissioner on Special duty and Aregbesola’s Deputy Chief of Staff, Gbenga Akano, are all there now. They have been there for close to a month. Could they have been there on their own personal money and what could have been their mission there? How many other state in Nigeria is having such representation in Ondo today?”
The Osun PDP publicity secretary stressed that Aregbesola was funding Ondo election on the order of Tinubu.