ACN, PDP In Battle Of Wits Over Good Governance

For years to come, the cold war between the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the Southwest will continue to generate a buzz as both political parties are agitating for the control of the affairs of the region in 2015.

Seven years ago, all the states in the zone except Lagos State were under the control of the PDP. But in a twist of fate, all fell back into the control of the ACN immediately after the 2011 general elections, except Ondo State that is controlled by Labour Party, LP.

While in the opposition, the Osun ACN employed an effective media campaign against the Oyinlola administration and persistently put his government on its toes with loads of criticisms. The then ruling party was always on the defensive.

However, with the change of baton, the two parties have been at each other’s throat on what should be done rightly and the situation on the ground.

While the ACN accused the PDP of gross incompetence during its seven years in government in the state, the PDP said the ACN was only crying wolf where there was none.

Determined to pay the ACN back in its own coin, the PDP carefully mapped out its strategy and recently hit at the ACN by accusing the governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, of planning to secede from Nigeria.

In Lagos State, the situation is the same. Any available opportunity is used by both parties to the maximum to hit at each other.

During the recent visit of the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan to Lagos, Governor Babatunde Fashola condemned the traffic gridlock her security aides created when they blocked some major roads in the state.

He pointed out that the situation was “worrisome because this is not an elected person and I think we all, including the security agencies, must know how we pander to our high officers, especially VIP movement, at the risk and expense of citizens and taxpayers whose money was used to fuel all the vehicles that we use to block the roads against those who pay those money.

Reacting to Fashola’s criticism, the Lagos PDP said the governor was economical with the truth, adding that it amounted to the pot calling the kettle black as the state government had, during the birthday celebration for the immediate past governor of the state, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, blocked several major roads.

The party pointed out that the whole of Lagos metropolis suffered heavy traffic jam that lasted the whole day just because Governor Fashola decided to celebrate the birthday of his godfather.

The battle in Oyo State is equally fierce. During the face-off between the government and workers in the state, the PDP seized the opportunity to accuse Governor Abiola Ajimobi’s government of insensitivity to workers’ plight, insisting that the state has no excuse not to pay the minimum wage, and asked the governor to resign.

The party’s zonal Publicity Secretary, Kayode Babade, in a statement said it was the height of wickedness for a governor, with over 1,000 political appointees earning an average of N300,000 per month to deny civil servants in his state the payment of just N18,000 as minimum wage.

Speaking on behalf of the governor, his Special Adviser on Media, Dr. Festus Adedayo, noted that PDP in the state is frustrated and has not realised that the people of the state have rejected it.

He alleged that the PDP was the engine room of destabilisation that is fuelling the impasse between government and the splinter group of labour in the state.

On the issue of overbloated aides, Adedayo noted that the PDP is ignorant of what is going on in the state, adding that the allegation was a reflection of the absurd desperation of the party to mislead the people of Oyo State.

In Ekiti State, it is a cat and mouse relationship. The state chapter of the PDP has criticised Governor Kayode Fayemi for allegedly wasting the state’s resources on illegal remittances to some persons in Lagos State to the tune of N250 million monthly.

Chairman of the party in the state, Mr. Makanjuola Ogundipe, also alleged that the Fayemi administration had wasted about N3 billion to plant flowers.

He added that the state government had sacked half of its workforce and had not achieved anything despite receiving over N200 billion since October 2010.

However, the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Funminiyi Afuye, debunking the allegation, said the PDP leader and his cohorts should not be taken serious as he is seeking attention for his party which has gone into oblivion.

His words: “This is a prudent government and the administration is transparent in all its dealings. That is why Governor Fayemi ensured that the Freedom of Information Act is domesticated in the state. Everything is transparent,” he said.

Therefore, political pundits are of the view that the parties’ allegations and counter-allegations are a pointer to the fact that the 2015 general election is fast approaching, and each party is employing different political tactics and intrigues to outsmart the other.

—Jamiu Yisa