Exactly a year ago today, Oyo state APC was thrown to the wolves.
An electoral coup triggered from the inside saw to the comprehensive albeit shocking annihilation of the APC in Oyo state.
It was the day Oyo state voters went to the polls to either extend Makinde’s Government for another four years or give Teslim Kolawole Folarin of the APC a start in the Government House.
Prior to the day, presidential and National Assembly election have held and expectedly, Oyo APC soared high, winning the presidential election in style and clinching all three Senatorial seats plus nine out of fourteen seats in the House of Representatives.
Expectations were high and optimism was justified in the camp of the APC in Oyo state.
The opposition PDP and Makinde Its candidate were rattled.
Shouldn’t they?
Unfortunately and surprisingly so, some disgruntled elements within the Oyo APC and the president elect as he then was were having a different plan.
A plan which will eventually flipp the table in favour of the opposition and lead to woes and gnashing of teeth for their own supposed party men.
An agreement have been reached to give Oyo state to Seyi Makinde of the PDP and those who made the agreement, without the knowledge or involvement of the APC in Oyo state ensured that every means foul or fair were employed to see that their own party was annihilated and disgraced at the polls.
It was a dark day for Democracy.
What was supposed to be an advantage in favor of the APC in Oyo state, the presidency It vigorously campaigned and labored to enthrone ended up being the albatross to the party in Oyo.
Not only did the party lose the gubernatorial election, the consequences of the sabotage orchestrated from within the party led to mass loss of House of Assembly election in 28 state constituencies.
Up till today, I am yet to come to terms with how people could lose their minds to the devil to the extent that they will not pause to consider the consequences of their actions on others and even on themselves in the future.
I will start with those who made sure the president elect toed their line of perdition.
They are those who claimed to be unhappy with the conduct of Congresses and primaries within the Oyo APC.
I have been wondering if this people ever considered that once more than one individual is interested in a position, some are bound to lose to the one destined to be the winner whether fair or foul.
I am equally disturbed that they failed to admit that what happened to Teslim Kolawole Folarin was not novel in Oyo APC.
It is very funny when I listened to some of them pontificating on how someone outmanoeuvred them and consequently weaponised the concept of ” jaa gba”.
As if all of them did not try all within their power to outmanoeuvre Folarin.
The one that baffles me most is that of the president elect as he then was.
He is the proponent of power grabbing.
According to him, ” power is not served alacarte”, that is, power is not given on a plate of Gold.
You have to grab it “and run with it”, those were his words.
He obviously demonstrated that in his journey to Ask Rock.
So, why should he have a problem with Folarin based on whatever the disgruntled elements fed him with?
Did Folarin not follow his footsteps and advice?
Or, is it that if it was him, it was ok and if it is any other, then, it is a crime?
It is painful that in their deployment of anger and bitterness, both the president elect and his foot soldiers overlooked the greater picture.
Every bitterness deployed against Folarin trickled down to hundreds of thousands of party men in Oyo state.
Party men who worked for their party so that they could also have hope of some sorts as reward.
The hopes of those ones have been sacrificed on the altar of greed, bitterness and ego.
Unfortunately, the president have continued from where he stopped as president elect.
He has pulled Oyo APC on the ground and have continued to trample on It through consistent deprivation.
It is exactly a year today when darkness was brought to engulf Oyo APC by Agents of mischief.
May Oyo APC survive.
SOLA ABEGUNDE
