Reprieve for Akeredolu, Aiyedatiwa as Tinubu Resolves Ondo Political Crisis

Deji Elumoye in Abuja and Fidelis David in Akure

Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State and his deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa will now experience relief following the resolution of the political crisis in the state by President Bola Tinubu.
However, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state has said the intervention of President Tinubu in the political crisis was a mere window dressing, saying the crisis was not yet over.

Worried by the prolonged absence of Akeredolu, the opposition party in the state, the deputy governor’s loyalists, and some senior lawyers had asked the governor to resign if he was unable to perform the functions of his office as governor.
The governor returned to Nigeria from Germany after a medical vacation on September 7, 2023, and since then, he has been at his private residence in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

While the governor’s critics said they are not begrudging him over his state of health, as anyone can suffer from health challenges, they have however, urged him to boldly declare his medical state to the people of the state.
As pressure was mounting on the governor to return to office or resign, his loyalists had also initiated failed moves to impeach the deputy governor.
However, the lingering political crisis appears to have been settled for good as President Tinubu on Friday night intervened and amicably resolved the months-long face-off between the warring camps of Akeredolu and his deputy, Aiyedatiwa.

This was a sequel to the marathon negotiations between the President, the deputy governor, representatives of Governor Akeredolu, federal and state lawmakers of Ondo, officials of the state’s chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and other stakeholders in the state at the State House, Abuja.
President Tinubu, according to a statement signed by his Media Adviser, Ajuri Ngelale, at the meeting advised all opposing parties to bury the hatchet and embrace peace, eliciting commitments to this effect.

This in essence, means Governor Akeredolu remains Chief Executive of the state, Aiyedatiwa still deputy governor, while the members of the State Executive Council continue their respective duties, even as the leadership of the state’s House of Assembly and the APC chapter in Ondo State is preserved.
In the resolution brokered by the president, while the deputy governor agreed to carry members of the cabinet and other senior government officials along, the Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Hon Oladiji Olamide, agreed to halt ongoing impeachment proceedings.

Giving the assurance to carry all along and calling for cooperation to move the state forward, Aiyedatiwa said: “I want to say that I pledge to all of you that I embrace every one of you. I put behind all that has happened before now. I’ve let go, just as the President has advised us.
“And I want to say that no offence, no guile in my mind whatsoever. All that has happened is politics. Impeachment is part of politics. If you survive it, it is also politics. It has come. I’ve survived it and every other thing is in the past.
“It is one big family and our father has intervened to bring all the children together to remain under the same family and with the position that I occupy, I will carry every one of you along in every decision that needs to be taken and everything that we do, we will work together; the executive and the legislature will work together to ensure that governance is on the right track.

“We should respect one another regarding the offices we occupy and our age differences. So, it’s going to be mutual respect.
“And I want to assure the party structure that we will work together because the party is supreme. We will always give you the due respect”, Aiyedatiwa said.
Reading out details of the resolutions after the meeting, the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Olamide said: “Our resolution is that one, we shall embrace peace. Secondly, there would be no more dissolution of the cabinet and the Deputy Governor would maintain the status quo as far as the House of Assembly leadership is concerned.

“We will maintain the status quo as far as the party leadership in the state is concerned and maintain the status quo as far as the leadership of the State House of Assembly is concerned. Thank you, Mr. President.”
Also speaking, Secretary to the State Government, Princess Oladunni Odu, said: “Our father, the president, has taken the trouble to settle our rancour in Ondo State. We owe you all the gratitude, sir. We will not disappoint you. We have taken every word you said. And we are going home as one united family under the party, APC.”  

In his remarks, the State APC Chairman, Ade Adetimehin, expressed delight at the outcome of Friday’s late-night deliberations, affirming that the party will remain a watchdog to ensure that the new commitments are adhered to.
He said: “Today is my happiest moment. And I know sanity has come to Ondo State. So, on behalf of the teeming supporters of our party in the state, we appreciate our leader, Mr. President.
“PDP has crumbled in the state; virtually, they decamp every day. The only problem we have is the one you have solved for us today. And that problem has been resolved permanently.”

Tinubu’s Intervention a Mere Window Dressing, PDP Insists

Reacting to Tinubu’s intervention, the opposition PDP in the state said the intervention of Tinubu was a mere window dressing.
The party through its Publicity Secretary, Kennedy Peretei said as long as Akeredolu remains in hiding, the cat-and-mouse race will continue.
 “There have been conflicting reports as resolutions of the presidential parley at the instance of President Bola Tinubu to resolve the political impasse that has plagued Ondo State for a better part of this year. Both Rotimi Akeredolu and his embattled Deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s camps interpreted the resolutions as being in their favour.

“Mrs. Betty Akeredolu celebrated the resolutions on her verified X-handle as ‘Hottest Breakfast to last everybody till 2025”. To Aiyedatiwa’s supporters, their worries about impeachment are over.
“Let us pray that the Presidential intervention will not go the way of the Bello Masari Reconciliation Committee set up by APC National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje. After several trips to Abuja at taxpayers’ expense, both parties returned to court despite promises to withdraw all cases.”
According to the PDP, “Again, major stakeholders in the All Progressives Congress (APC), the leadership of the Ondo State House of Assembly and Ondo State Government were at the Villa to iron out their intractable differences.

“From what we have read about the outcome, Tinubu’s intervention is a mere window dressing. Out of respect for his office, the impeachment of the deputy governor will no longer see daylight, but as long as Akeredolu remains in hiding, it is not yet Uhuru, the cat-and-mouse race will continue. The siege is not yet over”, the party added.