By Ikechukwu Samuel
A former prominent chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Jackson Lekan Ojo, has warned President Bola Tinubu against drawing parallels between the political situation in Osun State and the events that unfolded in Rivers State.
Ojo, who spoke against the backdrop of last weekend’s governorship election in Osun, said the people of the state would resist any attempt by the Federal Government to deploy its influence or security apparatus to manipulate the electoral process.
The former APC chieftain also cautioned against actions that could heighten political tension in the South-West, recalling that electoral manipulation and the misuse of federal power contributed to crises that eventually truncated Nigeria’s First, Second and Third Republics.
Speaking on the outcome of the Osun governorship election, Ojo said Osun State could not be compared politically with Rivers State, where President Tinubu suspended the elected governor, Siminalayi Fubara, and appointed an administrator.
“Rivers State is not Osun State. You saw the Federal might in Osun State during the election. The number of governors, senators and members of the House of Representatives that came into Osun,” he said.
“Thirty commissioners of police were sent to Osun State. That means one commissioner of police for every local government area. There were over 30,000 police, civil defence, DSS and other security personnel. Were they able to intimidate the people despite their huge presence?”
Ojo recalled an incident during Tinubu’s tenure as governor of Lagos State when former President Olusegun Obasanjo threatened to declare a state of emergency in the state.
“Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said he was going to declare a state of emergency, and the people of Lagos told him he dared not do that unless he wanted to turn the state into a battlefield. There would be serious resistance,” he said.
According to him, Tinubu is aware that any attempt to replicate what happened in Rivers State in Osun could trigger strong resistance from the people.
“Tinubu knows that it cannot be done in Osun State. There will be serious resistance. The way it happened here in Rivers State, and the people did not resist it, cannot happen in Osun State. The people will not accept it,” he said.
“Mr President knows that the temperature there is always rising, and he wouldn’t want it to rise to boiling point. Nobody can even suggest that to Mr President.”
On the tension that followed the Osun election, Ojo described the situation as “political intimidation taken too far”, insisting that the state remained largely peaceful despite what he called sponsored disturbances.
“What we are seeing in Osun State today is political intimidation taken too far. Osun State still remains a very peaceful state despite recent sponsored disturbances,” he said.
Ojo also expressed confidence in the role of traditional rulers in maintaining peace and security in the state.
“I am too sure that if the Federal Government did not turn its searchlights on the traditional institution in Osun State, they would meet and place a curse on all those who are responsible for any and every threat to security in the state,” he said.
