Osun: Aregbesola renews political battle with Oyetola, narrates how he was ‘betrayed’

Immediate past Minister of Interior and former Governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola has again opened up on how he fell out with his successor in office.

Aregbesola spoke over the weekend during the end-of-the-year thanksgiving organised by his loyalists in Ilesa, Osun state.

During the event, the former Governor narrated how his successor, Gboyega Oyetola, “betrayed him and his loyalists”.

Aregbesola was the governor of Osun between 2010 and 2018. He was succeeded by Oyetola, who served from 2018 to 2022.

Aregbesola played a key role in the emergence of Oyetola as the governor of Osun during the 2018 governorship election.

However, in the build up to the 2022 Osun governorship poll, the relationship between Aregbesola and Oyetola turned sour.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun state was divided into two factions due to the feud.

The division in Osun APC did not stop Oyetola, who was then the incumbent governor, from clinching the APC governorship ticket for the second time.

Aregbesola and his loyalists did not participate in the re-election campaign activities of Oyetola.

Oyetola would go on to lose the July 2022 governorship election to Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). However, He (Oyetola) is now Minister of Marine and Blue Economy.

Speaking during the event, Aregbesola accused Oyetola of betraying him and his loyalists after he won the 2018 governorship election.

The former Osun governor said he did not ask for money or personal positions from Oyetola, adding that he only sought the growth of the APC in Osun state.

Aregbesola added that some persons in Oyetola’s faction of the APC said a lot of nasty things about him.

“We did our own eight years in office and by the grace of God, we handed over power to the person who we felt would meet our interests and that of the party,” he said.

“But he betrayed us and the party. Those who are not patient and not in Osun began to say rubbish about the matter.

“I did not ask for money, positions, or acceptance of my counsel. I only asked that the party should not be destroyed.

“From the smallest of them to the biggest, I did not have any form of disagreement with them.

“Despite this, they went publicly to say rubbish about me.”

Speaking further, Aregbesola narrated how conditions given by his faction during a peace meeting ahead of the 2022 election, were not addressed.

He disclosed that at the peace meeting, it was stated that his faction should be given one-third of the positions in the administration that was going to be set up after the 2022 election.

He added that he was not invited to join the APC governorship campaign for the 2022 election.

The former minister said he wanted Osun APC to go into the 2022 election as a united party, adding that the move was frustrated.

“During the meeting, it was agreed that they would give our own faction one-third while they take two-thirds of the positions in the next administration after the 2022 election,” he added.

“We did not hear anything again about the agreement.

“On OSBC, their leader of governorship campaign said that anybody who was not invited should not come for the campaign.

“As a bonafide Yoruba man, I stayed away. No bonafide Yoruba person would hear that comment and go to where he was not invited.

“By the grace of God, by this time in 2024, I would have declared where we are heading to and it will be clear to everyone where Osun people are heading to.”