Book: Salary Deductions, Fighting Monarchs Caused Your Election Defeat, Oyinlola Replies Akande

Leader of the Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo; and a former Oyo State Governor, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, on Thursday faulted some of the claims made by another former governor of the state, Chief Bisi Akande, in his book, ‘My Participations.’

While Adebanjo faulted Akande’s claim that he (Adebanjo) pestered a national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, to build his Lekki house for him, Oyinlola also faulted the reason given by Akande for losing the 2003 governorship election in the state.

Oyinlola claimed that wrong actions taken by Akande led to the defeat he suffered in 2003, instead of insinuation that the election was rigged.

Oyinlola also denied tendering apology to Akande over actions he took while in office as the state governor, as claimed in the book.

The ex-governor, in a statement titled ‘Oyinlola’s preliminary response to Bisi Akande,’ obtained in Osogbo, explained that immediately after Akande’s emergence as governor in 1999, he embarked on retrenchment of workers, deducted workers’ salaries and fought royal fathers.

Oyinlola, who also dismissed assertion by Akande that he wrongly accused him of corruption on the construction of Governor’s Office, said when he succeeded Akande in 2003, the consultant handling the project told him that though he was paid in full, part of the money for the project was later taken from him to finance Akande’s second term election.

The statement read, “Chief Akande said the 2003 governorship election in Osun State was rigged in my favour. Chief Akande has repeatedly told this lie. The truth is known to everybody in the state that Akande lost the state shortly after he took over in 1999 and started fighting everyone in the state.

“He sacked thousands of workers and did not pay their entitlements. In some instances, the retrenched persons included husband, wife and children. He owed those who were not sacked months of unpaid salaries which I inherited and paid. He deducted 20 per cent of workers’ salaries to fund his projects. He fought obas, chiefs and religious groups and leaders.

“I came into office in May 2003 and discovered that the Governor’s Office complex which Akande commissioned for use after he lost the election was really not completed.

“The state government asked the contractor to come back to site and complete the works, more so when evidence in government accounts showed that he had been paid. But the project consultant shocked everyone with his claim that part of the payment was taken back to finance the 2003 re-election bid of Chief Akande.”

Adebanjo, in a statement on Thursday, also said Tinubu did not build his Lekki house for him as alleged by Akande.

Adebanjo alleged that Tinubu built a house for Akande.

The statement read, “I owe a duty to myself and to put the record straight for posterity about the big lie that Bola Tinubu built my house in Lekki for me.

“I, therefore, deny categorically that my house at Lekki was built with my resources through the sale of three developed properties, loan from GTBank and the sale of undeveloped landed property given (to) me by my late leader, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, of blessed memory.”