2019: Moneybags Will Lose Oyo Guber Race, Says Ex-CBN Dep Gov

By Ademola Babalola in Ibadan

A leading gubernatorial aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State, Chief Bayo Adelabu, has said 2019 is a defining year for the people of the state as all governorship aspirants would be adequately interrogated by the electorate to ensure the best man with outstanding pedigree emerge as the occupant of Agodi Government House.

Adelabu, who is the immediate past deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), said any moneybag politician planning to purchase the conscience of the electorate to sell their votes for a pot of porridge should better have a rethink.

Adelabu spoke to journalists in Ibadan in continuation of his consultations with APC leaders, supporters and stakeholders across local governments. He was also at the palace of the Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Saliu Adetunji, where he received royal blessings for the 2019 race on Thursday.

Responding to a question on the gale of defections across political parties, Adelabu who is a grandson of one of the founding fathers of Nigeria, Alhaji Adegoke Adelabu Penkelemesi, said, “our nascent democracy is fast improving and maturing. No mediocre can hide under any political party to contest election again in Oyo State. The electorate are more interested in the personality, pedigree and the track records of each of the candidates beyond party politics. On our political parties, there is no ideological difference in our political parties and that is why it is easier for politicians to move from one political party to another.

“And concerning the 2019 race, our people have started to ask questions and they will continue to do so. They ask questions about our educational background, our exposure, success of our family, and how we have contributed to the development of their immediate environment because they are tired of empty promises.

“We are moving beyond vote buying. Electorate will still articulate and weigh their decision despite whatever money you give them. Our people are no more selling their future for little money. They know that politicians easily forget them when they get to office and those unique questions are my selling points having been on the side of the masses all my life.”

He lauded the Governor of the State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, for his exceptional achievements in the area of peace and security, education, agriculture, health, commerce and infrastructural facilities across the geopolitical zones of the state, stressing that the governor’s successor should be a man that has talents and skills, energy, experience, and love of the masses to take the people of the state where they ought to be.