By Adeyinka Adeniran
An advocacy movement firmly committed to governorship power rotation to Òkèògùn Zone of Oyo state in 2027, Ẹgbẹ́ Àjọṣepọ̀ Fún Ìtẹsiwájú Gbogbo Wa, on Tuesday said it has disowned former deputy governors: Iyiola Oladokun, Moses Alake Adeyemo and the State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dayo Ogungbenro as its spokesperson.
Describing the trio as self-appointed spokespersons, the group said the affected individuals do not represent the collective mandate of Oke-Ogun people in negotiations that undermine the groups governorship aspirations.
The group spoke while addressing a Press Conference at the Hose of Chiefs, Oyo State House of Assembly Complex, State Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan, Oyo State.
Addressing the press, the Chief Adviser of the group, Alhaji Muda Ogunshola said holding party office does notbconfer moral authority to mortgage the regions destiny.
He reiterated that the true leaders of Oke-Ogun are the people themselves, the voters, thebgrassroots, the silent majority, warning that any engagement thatvtrades theie governorship demand for subordinate positions is rejected in totality.
Reiterating their demands, the group said the scheme of political parties to Zone party chaiemanship seat to the Zone will not be tolerated, adding that it’s bid for governorship is non negotiable.
He said, “Our position is no to tokenism. Given this historical reality, suggesting yet another party chairmanship slot for Òkèògùn amounts to political tokenism. It is neither justice nor inclusion. It is a strategic consolation prize designed to perpetuate executive exclusion.
“Experience has consistently shown that once a lesser political office is zoned to a particular region, the prospects of that same region subsequently producing the governor become significantly diminished — if not completely foreclosed.
“It was this experience that we bore in mind that informed our decision from inception of our movement in December 2024 to take a principled and unambiguous stand on behalf of the people of Òkèògùn in all the ten local government areas of Òkèògùn. We included in our operational document that:
“No to deputy governorship (Òkèògùn has produced five Deputy Governors). No to party chairmanship (history already shows overwhelming occupancy). Yes to the Governorship of Oyo state in 2027.
“In other words, from the beginning, we have spelt out that we reject any form of symbolic appeasement. What we demand is substantive inclusion. We are saying unequivocally that the era of political deception is over.
“What benefits one region must benefit another. We say equity is not selective and he who must come to equity must come with a clean hand.”
Calling for structured power rotation, the group said, “We like to assert that power rotation is not alien to progressive governance. We can see it operational in sister Southwest states and beyond, states such as Osun, Ogun State, Ondo, Ekiti, Lagos, as well as Kwara, Kogi, Edoand Delta State. Why should Oyo state be an exception?
“Section 14 (3) and (4) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) enshrines the principle of federal character — equitable distribution to prevent domination and promote inclusion. This constitutional spirit must guide political engineering in Oyo state.
“Therefore, we categorically state that certain individuals — namely Chief Moses Alake, Barr. Iyiola Oladokun, and Hon. Dayo Ogungbenro — do not represent the collective mandate of Oke-Ogun people in negotiations that undermine our governorship aspiration.
“Holding party office does not confer moral authority to mortgage a region’s destiny. The true leaders of Oke-Ogun are the people themselves — the voters, the grassroots, the silent majority. Any engagement that trades our governorship demand for subordinate positions is rejected in totality.”
The group further appealed to power brokers, traditional rulers including the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Abimbola Owoade and Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Ghandi Afolabi to support the course in the spirit of fairness.
They also appealed to political parties across the state to field candidates from Oke-Ogun for the Chairmanship positions, assuring that the region will ignore religious divides to queue behind candidates of the region for governorship across party lines.
Speaking, Ogunsola noted that thengrou had interviewed atleast seven citizens from the zone who are certified and qualified to run the state and bring about deserved transformation.
He gave the names of those interviewed to include: Remi Olaniyan, Bayo Shittu, Dr Gbenga Adekola, Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, Dr Ayandoye, Beulah Adeoye among others.
